Lakshya Sen’s sensational protection can drop jaws and create crowd spotlight packages, somewhat like Rishabh Pant’s one-handed sixes. However on the China Masters this week, Anders Antonsen slapped a 21-18, 21-15 victory onto Sen in quarters – although early within the match, Sen pulled off his behind-the-back dazzling protection for a winner.
However it was yet one more instance of the Indian, giving up when issues received powerful. Sen is gutsy, however not gritty sufficient. He can dazzle along with his distinctive expertise – his many eye-popping photographs, the fast reactions, the slowly-developing kill smash, however he’s not decided sufficient to battle the boring attritional battles.
Antonsen appears to be like consistently stressed to the informal watcher, however his resilient recreation is dependable. However what introduced Sen down have been previous refrains. Nearly damaged file reels. A 5-point lapse of focus, taking the foot off the pedal from 13-11 to 13-16, which stays a thriller in his recreation. The grief-giving kind of thriller, not a fascinating one. 11-8 up, Sen was comfortably catching the Dane on his far forehand with neatly efficient down-the-line smashes. However all it took for Antonsen to show the tables was drawing Sen into longer rallies, which pissed off the Indian no finish.
It’s a curious case as a result of Sen will not be low on endurance. He posts among the finest numbers in all metrics that mix in the direction of stamina, so he’s not low on gas. He has the defensive mettle to final these rallies, he can run, he can anticipate, the gradual courts really assist not put an excessive amount of stress on his protection and he’s a tremendously clever shuttler, one of many world’s smartest in studying his opponents. At occasions you marvel, in truth, if he enjoys defensively dazzling spells an excessive amount of and unnecessarily prolongs rallies, simply because he can.
However all proof factors to him getting vastly aggravated when his opponent hunkers down and defends doggedly (not as spectacularly as him, however matching him on work charge), after which the endurance snaps, and Sen offers all of it away.
It occurred within the second set on Friday when Sen was a set down and trailed Antonsen 7-10. He gave it his all the pieces to disclaim the Dane the mid-set lead, however 7-11 was an correct microcosm of what all the time goes flawed with Sen. The Indian was accountable for the rally alright, even when it prolonged. However Antonsen – as a result of it’s his job to oppose as opponent – received caught in, and began defending pretty brilliantly himself. Antonsen was barely clinging on, pushed to completely different locations on the court docket demanding low retrieves one after one other. Sen lastly pinned him on the left of the court docket, vastly out of place to achieve something that he would ship to the correct. Think about an open objective in soccer, along with his favorite goalkeeper Ederson fully out of the body. Why then would you goal for the correct sideline and smash completely extensive?
As his father and coach, DK Sen approached him at mid-set interval, Lakshya might solely wryly smile and shake his head. An 8-10 would learn very completely different from 7-11. He had simply constructed the purpose admirably nicely, so there was no downside along with his power or the mind smarts or technique. However Sen botched it so sensationally that you might sense a confidence disaster from a thousand miles away. Additionally, the impetuous rush of blood – to overdo the smash, as an almighty launch as a result of Antonsen had pissed off him vastly.
However it wasn’t the one time.
Because the match careened in the direction of a loss, Sen began smashing wildly lacking the traces. He beat Jonatan Christie on the Olympics and can beat Antonsen and Shi Yuqi sooner or later, however there’s one thing to be stated about their self-discipline in controlling the smash-kill so it doesn’t wander out of bounds.
In a unique sport, however Indian tennis participant Karan Rastogi who sparred with Maria Sharapova on the Bollettieri academy had as soon as spoken about how the glamour queen of tennis, would place a coin on the court docket close to the traces, and goal 500 photographs at it, with out stopping. Simply to get the self-discipline in of hitting the identical spot. These will need to have been extremely unglamorous coaching periods, however they stopped elevated coronary heart charges, that see a gap, a large empty court docket, from hashing a routine smash winner.
Indians have watched Kidambi Srikanth spray smashes with rising consternation, and the gifted Priyanshu Rajawat misses these loads too. However when Lakshya Sen falls aside with callous smashes, you start to query the grit, as a result of he got here agonisingly near the Olympic medal, and can discover himself in these conditions once more. The 13-11 to 13-16 foot off the pedal is a deeper malaise. However the bungled smash at 7-11 has simpler options, rooted in psychological self-discipline.
Frankly, the frenzy of blood and hyper-aggression won’t even be an correct prognosis, and his coaches know higher. As with Srikanth, Sen most likely will get terrified that if he doesn’t go for the traces and hold the shuttle as distant as potential, Antonsen would possibly one way or the other retrieve it and extend the rally. However backing himself to have the ability to battle as soon as extra even when the opponent does attain the shuttle, is the one approach to not try the rash smash, even in a non-desperate state of affairs. Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn has struck consistency solely on acing these.
Lakshya Sen must know his protection isn’t simply dazzling, however reliable too. It’s the one approach to discover composure when he assaults.
