The Indian prodigy Lakshya Sen is having an impressive run at the All England Open 2024. During his quarterfinal match against Lee Zii Jia, he received a motivational message from Prakash Padukone, a legendary figure in Indian badminton, which helped him secure a resounding win.
Prakash Padukone’s words for Lakshya Sen
Coach Vimal Kumar has revealed the message Prakash Padukone gave Lakshya Sen when he was leading 11-8 in the decider when Padukone noticed a bit of tentativeness creeping into his game. Padukone then fired up Sen, reminding him that he didn’t come all the way to lose and go out of the All England Open. This message seemed to have a positive impact on Sen, who went on to defeat Lee Zii Jia 20-22, 21-16, 21-19.
“It was like the old times, like when we were young,” Vimal would reminisce. “Even Lakshya seemed happy and driven.”
Vimal would reveal another message that Padukone and the coaching staff would tell Sen before almost sealing his qualification for the Olympics. Vimal said that the youngster was told not to overthink about making it to Paris.
Coach Vimal Kumar also revealed that they would be looking to protect Sen from injury ahead of the Olympics. He believes that Sen can deliver at the Olympics but his body needs to be protected from injury.
“We told him what’s the worst that can happen? You won’t qualify. But now that he’s managed it, we’ll take a few calls on scheduling his tournaments cutting down on some. His body needs to be protected from injury. He can deliver at the Olympics, inject pace when needed,” said Vimal.
Sen’s victory was a sensational come-from-behind win that lasted an hour and 10 minutes. After this victory, he faced Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie in the semi-final on March 16.
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