After an entertaining group-stage round, India's medal contenders in the men's singles category, Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy will be taking on each other in the round of 16 on Thursday, August 1 with the winner advancing to the quarterfinal round and the loser crashing out.
The unseeded Lakshya has entered the round of 16 with a phenomenal win 21-18, 21-12 over the third seed Jonatan Christie. After conceding a 4-0 lead in the first game, Lakshya clawed his way back while playing with the drift and left the Indonesian stunned by winning it.
In the second game, Lakshya was playing on the good side (against the drift) and it proved to be too easy for him as he stomped an erroneous Christie and left a lasting impression on the game.
Lakshya came into the game with a poor 4-1 record against Christie having defeated him four years ago at the Badminton Asia Team Championships. Therefore, Lakshya was under the pump but dished out a magnificent effort to outclass Christie.
"I think it was a tough match today, happy with the way I played," Sen was quoted as saying by PTI.
"Yes, definitely (gold is in sight). I think the last few months the form has been really good. There have been ups and downs, but overall, I was in good shape in the last few months, and especially while playing here in the French Open, I found my momentum and form.
"I was just trying to build up for a good event and I'm really pumped up to fight every match and every point," he added.
On the other hand, HS Prannoy had a comparatively easy draw. He was pitted against Fabian Roth of Germany and Le Duc Phat of Vietnam. Prannoy defeated the German shuttler 21-18, 21-12 in straight games and was slightly tested against the Vietnamese shuttler in a three-game-long clash, eventually winning it 16-21, 21-11 and 21-12.
HS Prannoy vs Lakshya Sen head-to-head record
While the badminton fans in India would have wanted both players to claim a medal each, the draw of the tournament is not going to let that happen.
Lakshya has faced his compatriot seven times and has a 4-3 favourable head-to-head record against him. The last meeting between the two happened during the India Open in January 2023 and Lakshya had emerged victorious by 21-14, 21-15 in the end.
Date | Tournament | Player 1 | Player 2 | Scoreline | Winner |
Tue 1/17/2023 | India Open 2023 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 14-21 15-21 | Lakshya Sen |
Wed 1/11/2023 | Malaysia Open 2023 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 22-24 21-12 21-18 | HS Prannoy |
Thu 10/20/2022 | Denmark Open 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 9-21 18-21 | Lakshya Sen |
Thu 8/25/2022 | World Championships 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 17-21 21-16 21-17 | HS Prannoy |
Wed 6/15/2022 | Indonesia Open 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 21-10 21-9 | HS Prannoy |
Fri 3/11/2022 | German Open 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 15-21 16-21 | Lakshya Sen |
Fri 1/14/2022 | India Open | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | 21-14 9-21 14-21 | Lakshya Sen |
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