Kumamoto Masters: Lakshya Sen beats Yushi Tanaka to enter semifinals

Lakshya Sen continued his strong run at the Kumamoto Masters Japan Super 500, defeating Japan’s Yushi Tanaka in straight games to book his place in the men’s singles semi-finals on Friday (Nov 13). The eighth-seeded Indian defeated the World No. 31 21-16, 21-15 in 40 minutes at the Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium. Despite playing in front of a home crowd, Tanaka struggled to match Lakshya’s attacking game and quick returns. While, the Indian stayed in control for most of the match to seal a comfortable win.

The victory is important for Lakshya as he looks to qualify for the season-ending BWF World Tour Finals in China. He is currently 12th in the World Tour rankings with 64,980 points and only top eight players will qualify for the tournament and a title win in Japan could improve his chances.

Lakshya will next face Indonesia’s sixth seed Alwi Farhan in the semi-finals on Saturday (Nov 14). The Indian has lost both his previous matches against the World No. 10 and will look to turn things around.

The 24-year-old is also aiming to win his second consecutive BWF Tour title after lifting the Hylo Open trophy in Germany last month. After missing the Korea Masters, he has made a strong return in Japan and has won his last two matches without dropping a game.

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Against Tanaka, Lakshya took control of the opening game after an even start. The Japanese shuttler tried to fight back, but the Indian held his nerve to take the lead.

Lakshya further maintained the pressure in the second game and created a four-point advantage before closing out the match.

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Meanwhile, former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth was knocked out of the tournament after losing 22-24, 15-21 to Japan’s Koki Watanabe in 41 minutes.