I see great improvement in Lakshya Sen’s tactical acumen, says coach Vimal Kumar

Lakshya Sen surprised many but not his mentor and coach Vimal Kumar. "I am not surprised. I thought he will do well," Vimal told TOI after Lakshya got a walkover in the quarterfinal of the All England Championship on Friday.

Lakshya will play Malaysia's Lee Zee Jia in the semis. Lee defeated Kento Momota of Japan 21-7, 13-21, 21-11 in another quarterfinal. “I don't want to comment on that match now...But I am happy that he will have good rest today and will be ready for tomorrow,” Vimal said.

From not being selected to the Indian team to becoming the country’s best bet at All England, it’s been an amazing turnaround for Lakshya. The turnaround started at the Dutch Open last year. “He was on his own at these tournaments.

He started beating several top players. When he reached Jakarta, he was already playing at a good level. He had some good wins in Europe, getting to the quarterfinals in France, doing well in Hylo Open.

He beat top players like Loh Kean Yew, Kunlavat and others," Vimal said and added that these victories had bolstered Lakshya's confidence. "When he went to Jakarta, he beat top rally players like Nishimoto and playing tough, long matches bolstered his confidence," he added. Lakshya is basically an attacking player but the way he handled Anders Antonsen on Thursday and Viktor Axelsen last week was impressive.

"After playing many such matches, he realised that hitting through someone won't work always. He was basically an attacking player. But now he is playing with a lot of calm.

I can see considerable improvement in the tactical acumen,” Vimal said. In December, the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy, where Lakshya trains, hired a Korean coach. “Koreans are tough task masters.