Lakshya Sen's journey at the Yonex US Open 2023 ended in the semi-finals against China's Li Shi Feng on Saturday (July 15). The match between Lakshya and Feng continued for an arduous one hour and 16 minutes. The Indian shuttler put up a great fight against the reigning All-England champion but eventually lost the match 17-21, 24-22, 17-21.
Sen held a strong 5-2 head-to-head record against Feng, but still came up short against the Chinese shuttler. There was some aggressive gameplay on display from both players.
In the first game, Feng was able to take a healthy lead in very less time. But the second game was a close encounter, where the Commonwealth Games champion eked out the game by the tiniest of margins.
Feng stood at 22 points when Lakshya clinched two consecutive points to level the match.
The Chinese took an early lead of 11-8 at the break in the deciding game. Lakshya went on to commit some unforced errors during the final stretch. This navigated the game in the favor of the Chinese player.
With Sen's defeat, the Indian challenge in the US Open 2023 has come to an end. Earlier, Lakshya Sen had defeated Sankar Muthusamy in an all-Indian quarterfinal to grab a spot in the semis. PV Sindhu, too, had bowed out in the last eight.
Lakshya Sen ends North American swing with a title
Lakshya Sen might have bowed out in the semifinals of the US Open, but he can be proud of a terrific campaign in North America. Last week the Indian ace went on to lift the trophy at the Canada Open, a BWF Super 500 event.
In the final, Sen defeated Li Shi Feng, the very player who knocked him out a week later at the US Open.
Lakshya Sen's heroics saw him soaring up the rankings charts to 12th.
