Lakshya Sen loses in German Open Super 300 final

Lakshya Sen's giant-killing run ended with a straight-game loss to Thailand's rising star Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the summit clash of German Open Super 300 badminton tournament on Sunday. The 20-year-old Sen, who had claimed his maiden Super 500 title at India Open in January, lost 18-21, 15-21 in 57 minutes to the three-time world junior champion Vitidsarn in the final match.

World number 12 Sen came into the match with a 3-3 head-to-head record against Vitidsarn, ranked 20th, having beaten the Thai in their last meeting at Hylo Open last year. In a battle of equals, Sen and Vitidsarn matched each other in speed in the rallies to move 4-4 before the Thai rode on his variations and deception to grab a comfortable 11-6 lead at the break.

Sen worked up his pace and took control of the net to make it 15-16 but an alert Vitidsarn managed to grab two game points with an overhead cross-court drop. Sen needed medical attention for a blister on his foot even as the Thai came up with a cross court smash to pocket the opening game.

The gruelling semifinal against Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen seemed to have taken a toll on Sen as Vitidsarn jumped to a 7-3 lead in the second game before moving to a 11-5 advantage after the change of sides. The Indian needed the doctor's attention again as he fought his way back with four straight points but Vitidsarn managed to move to 19-15 and then took five match points before sealing the second game and the match in the first chance.

Sen had won two Super 100 titles -- Dutch Open and SaarLorLux Open -- besides three international challenge titles at Belgium, Scotland and Bangladesh in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic came in the way of his progress. Last year, the youngster made it to the