Rajawat rallied to beat his friend and fellow Thomas Cup champion 16-21, 21-16, 21-13 in an hour and 15 minutes to enter Round 2 of the India Open. The India Open was always going to be a crucial stop for both Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat.
The former is an ex-champion, an established star, the flagbearer of Indian men’s badminton today, one who has beaten the best in the world regularly.
Rajawat, on the other hand, is among the country’s most promising shuttlers, already challenging HS Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth.
But both Sen and Rajawat have witnessed a rapid dip in their performance of late.
Following a dismal start to 2023 when Sen was recovering from his deviated nasal septum surgery, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion was beginning to show signs of his old self when he reached the semi-finals of Thailand Open, US Open and Japan Open before finally clinching Canada Open.
But the 22-year-old went through an incredible dip in form to lose seven successive first round losses (in individual events) since the end of the 2023 World Championships.(HT)