Lakshya Sen falls to Nhat Nguyen in first round of French Open; Rohan and Ruthvika win

Lakshya Sen was eliminated in the first round of the French Open Super 750 after losing 7-21, 16-21 to Ireland's Nhat Nguyen. However, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde secured a 21-12, 21-19 win in mixed doubles

Paris: Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen was knocked out in the first round of the French Open Super 750 badminton tournament after suffering a straight-game defeat to Ireland’s Nhat Nguyen in the men’s singles here on Tuesday.

Lakshya, who had made it to the finals of the Hong Kong Open earlier this year, looked off-colour from the start and succumbed to a 7-21, 16-21 loss to the world No. 29 Nhat.

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The 24-year-old from Almora struggled with his rhythm throughout the match, repeatedly hitting wide and into the net. His deep tosses often missed the lines, and his attacking play lacked precision, while Nhat’s steep smashes caused problems for the Indian.

Lakshya quickly fell behind 2-7 in the opening game, and despite working hard in the rallies, he faltered on the finishing shot. After a wide return, he found himself six points behind at the interval, with Nhat leading 11-5. Nhat then surged to 19-7 before sealing the first game with a crisp cross-court winner.

The change of ends brought little improvement for Lakshya, who quickly trailed 1-6 in the second game. He managed to reduce the deficit to 4-6, but a series of unforced errors allowed Nhat to extend his lead to 11-5 at the break.

Lakshya mounted a brief fightback, closing the gap to 11-15, but more mistakes at crucial points hurt his chances. At 14-17, a long rally ended with Lakshya sending a backhand into the net, and Nhat sealed the match with a deceptive cross-court shot, saving two match points before finishing the contest.

In contrast, the Indian pair of Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde had a strong start in the mixed doubles category. The duo defeated Ukraine’s Oleksii Titov and Yevheniia Kantemyr 21-12, 21-19 in their opening match. The Indian pair will now face local favorites and World Championships bronze medallists Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue, who are seeded fifth in the tournament.