All England Open Badminton Championships : Lakshya loses to Axelsen in final

Birmingham: World Championships bronze medallist Lakshya Sen finished as the runner-up at the 2022 All England Open Badminton Championships after losing to world number one Viktor Axelsen in the men's singles final, here on Sunday.

Sen, ranked world No 11, lost 10-21, 15-21 to reigning Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen. The world No 1 was phenomenal in this tournament and didn't drop a single game on his way to the top of the podium.

The world No1 brought his A-game to the final. He found his rhythm early into the match and carried it through the opening game. There were moments of brilliance from Sen but those weren't enough to challenge the former world champion, who won the first game convincingly.

In the second game, Axelsen used his powerful smashes to dominate Sen. The young Indian tried hard to defend but long rallies took a toll on him. Sen won three points on the trot to make a comeback but Axelsen showed his class and eventually won the second game and title.

In the mixed-doubles final, the Japanese pair of Yuta Watanabe and Arisa Higashino defeated the Chinese pair of Wang Yi Lyu and Huang Dong Ping 21-15, 21-14 in a match that lasted nearly an hour.

Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida have been crowned Women's doubles champion. The Japanese duo defeated the Chinese pair of Zheng Yu and Zhang Shu Xian in straight games 21-13, 21-9, in a match that lasted 41 minutes.

Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and Bagas Maulana have been crowned the men's doubles champion. The pair defeated second seeds and compatriots Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan 21-19, 21-13 in an all-Indonesian final.

Also read: Lakshya Sen reaches All England Open final

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