Young sensation Lakshya Sen said that India, the defending Thomas Cup winners, are the favorites to win the men’s team gold medal in badminton at the Asian Games. Sen also expressed his desire to meet fellow countryman and Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra during the quadrennial competition.
Sen, a bronze medalist at the 2021 global championships, was one of the masterminds behind India’s historic Thomas Cup triumph in May of last year. According to him, India would be a strong contender for the Asian Games gold medal.
“Undoubtedly, the team is quite well-looking. We are going as the world champions since it is the same squad who won the Thomas Cup. Sen told PTI, “I believe the players competing against us are aware that it is difficult (to overcome India), since we are capable of defeating any team in the globe.
Sen emphasized the need of a group effort in the Asian Games.
We don’t lack confidence, in my opinion. We work along well and have this sense of camaraderie. All the teams are competitive, so we must give it our all.
To succeed there, we’ll need to work effectively as a team. The whole team is optimistic, and we are anticipating a successful outcome,” Sen stated.
The 22-year-old Almora native, who took home silver from the 2018 Youth Olympic Games and gold from the 2022 Commonwealth Games, will compete solely in the team championships in the 19th iteration of the competition.
I’ll be attending the Asian Games for the first time. It shares a setting with the Commonwealth Games and the Youth Olympics.
Sen. added, “I am anticipating the event and also the opportunity to interact with other Indian and international sportsmen and learn about their sports and way of life.
“We traveled to the Commonwealth Games with the TT delegation last year since we were the only team that competed from the beginning to the last day of the competition. Their games were in the next hall. I thus seen several TT matches. I didn’t have time to watch other events, he said.
Sen, who is ranked 11th in the world, missed the Asian Games’ individual competition after falling to Kidambi Srikanth in the auditions in May of this year.
Sen anticipated that the opportunity would allow him to personally meet Chopra, who would be participating in the javelin throw.
I exclusively participate in team events. I am thus eager to see Neeraj Chopra. I would love to go see him play and show my support if I had the time.
“I’ve talked to him before, but we’ve never really met. I am thus eagerly anticipating that,” he stated.
Due to their hectic international schedule, the Indian players didn’t have time for a lengthy training session. They are now sharpening their talents at a week-long camp in Hyderabad.
This time, there were certain significant occasions, including the World Championships and the China Super 1000, which couldn’t really be avoided.
But that is the same for everyone since we have just started competing. It all depends on how well you do on the actual game day.
“The Asian Games are important to many Indians, so it’s like a huge pressure competition. As a consequence, I am coming (to the Asian Games) fully intending to compete and anticipating success,” he stated.
The team competition will kick off the badminton activities on September 28.
