Viktor Axelsen vs  Lakshya Sen

5/8/2024,

How, in an enduring encounter against Viktor Axelsen, Lakshya Sen erred in the first set due to overthinking and in the second set due to over passiveness

Sen lost three game points in the first set, and Axelsen predicted that he would have issues if he began to think.

 

Lakshya, I think, thought it through well.

 

Lakshya Sen had given it his all, discarding a lifetime of dedication and forcing the legendary Viktor Axelsen to concede in the Olympic quarterfinal with an incredible cross-court smash that was extraordinary in both location and force. Paris had stopped to witness the downfall of the monarch and the ascent of the princeling.

 

Sen was ahead 17–11, but he had given up a 17–17 draw against the reigning Danish champion. Sen, however, was set up for an easy opening set victory at 20–17 by his excellent, cutting smash with a spun racquet face. There was a sense of a great upset in the air when Sen's gold-ambition was reduced to a bronze and the tables changed in a matter of seconds.

 

Perfect took a serious fall as a tense Sen let up a bad serve to make the score 20–18. Sen startled everyone and mostly troubled his opponent after which Axelsen won the match in 53 minutes, 22–20, 21–14, having done everything correctly but winning the finale.

Sen's inability to secure a 20–17 lead is captured precisely by the renowned Dane, who skilfully transformed his Indian dream become reality.

 

Axelsen was asked directly, as he was looking at a 17–20 scoreline, what he was thinking. He stated bluntly, "I tried not to think when I was 17." "Because you will run into issues if you start thinking."

 

After his opponent fired two long returns that allowed Axelsen to equalise the score at 20-20, he suddenly started to decline. "I believe Lakshya gave it a lot of thought," he added. Sen applied a great deal of pressure to the Dane, and the Dane rewarded those errors with excellent clutch play.

 

The 30-year-old then performed the unlikeliest of feats, guaranteeing himself his third Olympic medal and making him an all-time great. The Indian, who had believed he had the set in his pocket minutes earlier, was taken aback when he started to twist his serve stance, taking more than seven or eight seconds instead of the usual rapid throw-in. This somewhat delayed the start of the rally.

 

Sen's composure was so shaken by the two dawdle serves that he threw a return into the net, losing the opening set 22–20. It was the most deft of set pieces.

 

This was a historic occasion for a nation that has never sent a male athlete to the Olympic semifinals. Those final seconds were nerve-wracking for a shuttler who had lived for this moment—potentially halfway into an Olympic final—since he was eight years old. Axelsen's grey eyes had glistened with the realisation.

 

It was undoubtedly significant for Lakshya. I am aware of what the occasion does; it makes you believe I am gaining ground and have a good chance. But once more, it's quite normal to think in that way," he remarked after noting Sen's potential thought bubbles. "I've personally been there. He began to feel a little uneasy. And when you (the opponent) become anxious, I know I need to hit and maintain the shuttle in the court before playing the correct shots because I can bet his nerves will cause him to make mistakes. And that is what took place.

 

Sen was the centre of attention for everyone observing. He was about to do something boldly unlikely. But he was unable to conjure up top brutality. "It didn't bother me, the 17-serve miss," he maintained. But in the end, I felt a little uneasy. I made easy mistakes from my end in the next two points, from 20–20,” he said.

 

He had Axelsen dancing to his music up until that point. His backline clears and lifts were pinpoint accuracy, and his crosscourt smashes were sending the Dane flying. Axelsen, who controlled rallies in the opening set, was caught completely off guard by Sen's overhead deception at 18-13 when his cross touched a crescent of the sideline at 11-10.

 

For the first time these Olympics, someone was not in the slightest bit scared by the massive Axelsen smash, since the Dane had been sailing wide and long in an attempt to evade Sen's retrieves. The World No. 2 had to dig deep and muster up the defensive effort to get back to 19–17 when he performed his tiny serve variation and abrupt flick serves to sabotage Sen's momentum.

 

Axelsen had also been attempting to take advantage of Sen's forehand lateral reach the entire time. Sen may get trapped there and compelled to pause and improvise a feeble comeback before hitting his backhand side since he is unable to apply a whip to that shuttle that comes at ear level. Through the second, Axelsen persisted with the strategy.

Sen led 7 to 0 in the second.

 

However, it appeared as he pulled his punches due to the missed opportunity in the first set. Losing three game points didn't bother me. In the second, I got off to a good start. Just trying to play the same game, that's all. After I got a good lead, he changed a little bit, and I was quite passive. Maybe if I had attacked a little more in the second set, especially after taking a commanding lead. It was tough for me once he returned to the game, he remarked, as Axelsen smashes rained down all around him, eliminating him.

 

Sen led 11–10 and was eliminated in a matter of minutes, trailing 14–21. At that very moment. He had blown the occasion.

 

He said afterwards, "I have everything to play for tomorrow," alluding to his semifinal encounter with Malaysian Lee Zii Jia.

 

Axelsen declared Sen a 2028 LA sure-shot gold candidate and applauded the fight, even though he acknowledged that Sen was well-pushed. The experience did matter today. Lakshya outperformed me for most of the game. He was in a position to win. However, I won this match tonight," he said.

A gold medal contender and acknowledged icon must know when to give up thinking tactically and follow your instincts, experience, and muscle memory. Sen thought he had the first set, even though he shouldn't have been thinking at all.