Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen wins Canada Open 2023

Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen won the Canada Open 2023 tournament by beating China’s Li Shi Feng in Calgary on Sunday. The Indian ace needed 50 minutes to notch up the 21-18, 22-20 win.

This was his second Super 500 title after having won the India Open in 2022.

Sen began the match on a high, leading 6-2 at one point in the first game. Shi Feng found his momentum back as he crawled back into the game to make it 15-15.

However, from thereon, Sen went into an offensive mode and would punish the Chinese opponent on any lose floater. Lakshya Sen collected points in a cluster after the 15-all scoreline to win the first game 21-18 and headed into the second game with a psychological edge over his opponent.

Shi Feng, however, fought back tenaciously and at one point, held the edge over Lakshya Sen, cruising in the second game at 20-16. Sen portrayed immense grit from thereon to end his title hopes with the winning score of 22-20 in the second game of the match.

In a game dominated by long rallies, Sen made sure that he made full use of his reach when Shi Feng pushed him to the corner while leading 20-16. However, the Indian quickly understood the ploy set up by his Chinese opponent and turned the tide in his favor soon after.

Shi Feng had also earlier lost to Lakshya Sen at the Thailand Open this year. It would have surely played a part in this gripping encounter but it was Lakshya’s resolve that won him and India a title in the end.

Sen had struggling since last year with health issues, which also saw him fall in the rankings. On his road to glory at Calgary, Sen beat the second, fourth and fifth seeds in what was a memorable week for the Indian.

Lakshya Sen's chances of qualifying for the Paris Olympics will see a massive boost from the Canda Open win as he will now get crucial ranking points.