Lakshya Sen is the the man to beat if his recent performances are any indication. Fresh from his win over world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen of Denmark in the semifinals of the German Open last week, he dethroned Lee Zii Jia to make the final of the All England Championships in Birmingham on Saturday. But Lakshya knows his job is not done and he intends to go all the way on the morrow. Excerpts.
Having made the All England final at the expense of the defending champion, how do you sum up your feelings right now?
I was trying to play one point at a time and not to think that I am in the All England semifinal. Those thoughts did come but I am happy to have won. I will now focus on recovering well and go all out in the final tomorrow.
The match was up and down. You had your moments in the first. Lee came back. Where do you think it turned for you?
In the first game, I got a good length and the lifts were all going good. In the second game, I made a lot of errors on the net, he got the lead in the beginning and it is hard to cover from there. Going into the third game, I played safe on the net rather than go too close and tried not to give easy points.
Did you expect the game to be so sapping?
Yes. When you play someone like him, or any top player, you prepare to go all out. I was expecting this as it is a crucial tournament and you need to give it your best. The rest I got yesterday helped me.
You were always rated very high ever since you started playing. Do you think you’ve come of age now that you’re in the All England final?
I have one more match to play. My focus is on the final now. But yes, it gave me a lot of belief and kept me going when people said such things. I am here now.
You held back on your attacking game till the end. Any particular strategy?
The strategy I had worked in the first game. The second game wasn’t that bad, but yeah due to my errors I gave up the point. In the end you go all out because you can’t give him an open chance to attack as he is one of the best attacking players in the world. But when you are under pressure, you can go on an all-out attack. That was clear in my mind. The strategy was completely different in the last few points.
You looked a little nervous today…
Definitely, I was nervous. That’s why I tried to play one point at a time.
Having made the All England final at the expense of the defending champion, how do you sum up your feelings right now?
I was trying to play one point at a time and not to think that I am in the All England semifinal. Those thoughts did come but I am happy to have won. I will now focus on recovering well and go all out in the final tomorrow.
The match was up and down. You had your moments in the first. Lee came back. Where do you think it turned for you?
In the first game, I got a good length and the lifts were all going good. In the second game, I made a lot of errors on the net, he got the lead in the beginning and it is hard to cover from there. Going into the third game, I played safe on the net rather than go too close and tried not to give easy points.
Did you expect the game to be so sapping?
Yes. When you play someone like him, or any top player, you prepare to go all out. I was expecting this as it is a crucial tournament and you need to give it your best. The rest I got yesterday helped me.
You were always rated very high ever since you started playing. Do you think you’ve come of age now that you’re in the All England final?
I have one more match to play. My focus is on the final now. But yes, it gave me a lot of belief and kept me going when people said such things. I am here now.
You held back on your attacking game till the end. Any particular strategy?
The strategy I had worked in the first game. The second game wasn’t that bad, but yeah due to my errors I gave up the point. In the end you go all out because you can’t give him an open chance to attack as he is one of the best attacking players in the world. But when you are under pressure, you can go on an all-out attack. That was clear in my mind. The strategy was completely different in the last few points.
You looked a little nervous today…
Definitely, I was nervous. That’s why I tried to play one point at a time.
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