PARIS: Sweat and blood and heart. Lakshya Sen gave it all on the court of Porte de la Chapelle here on Monday. But somewhere, in the middle of it all, a doubt crept into his mind. He failed to ignore it. Soon, several questions swamped him, overwhelmed him and then destroyed him. Suddenly, the confidence and belief were gone. He crumbled slowly, painfully and faded away.
In the bronze-medal match against Malaysia's Lee Zii Zia, India's 22-year-old played like a champion for most part of the contest. He looked in control and eager for a medal. But like on Sunday, in his match against Denmark's Victor Axelsen, who successfully defended his Olympic title by crushing world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn 21-11, 21-11, Sen lost from a winning position.
