Paris Olympics 2024: Lakshya Sen working on net game ahead of his Olympic debut

Lakshya Sen. Pic/AFP

Indian badminton star Lakshya Sen on Friday said he has worked on his net game and the recent trait of conceding points late in a contest as he prepares in Marseille, France for the Paris Olympics 2024 starting next week. The world No 19 has been drawn in Group L along with Indonesian rival Jonatan Christie (WR 3), Guatemala's Kevin Cordon (WR 41) who finished fourth in Tokyo Olympics, and Belgium's Julien Carragi (WR 52).

"We have focused a lot on overall improving the game and we had a good time for the last 6-7 weeks where I could really work on all the areas of the game," Sen replied to a PTI query during a virtual interaction. "From defence to attack and overall, we have tried to get better at everything, and at the same time, worked a lot on the areas (in) which I was not really good at (and) maybe give extra time on the net game, the defence and also closing stages."

"It is important to be sharp and be aggressive. (In the) last few days, we are still trying to get good match practice here, play short games and also have a good match practice session so that I am sharp towards the end of the game," Sen said. The 22-year-old said adjusting to shuttle movement in a place near to the sea is different and he expects similar conditions at the Paris Olympics 2024, where he will travel on July 22. "I'm in Marseille right now and I'll be training here (for) next two-three days and then (on July) 22nd afternoon, I move into the village. It's a three hours journey from here to Paris," he said.

"We have a good team of 10 members here and we decided this (place) because this is closer to Paris and we have a setup here with Popov brothers (Christo and Boris) who are good sparring (partners) as well. "(It was about) mainly coming here early, get used to the time zones, the sleeping patterns and just be on the same. I would say the shuttle speed also matters a lot because in Bangalore it is quite fast," he continued.

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"When we train in a different place like Marseille, which is closer to the sea, the shuttle travels much slower and I think it will be somewhat similar in Paris as well keeping the drift and air conditions in mind it will be a little bit different but overall the shuttle speed also makes a lot of difference," he said. Sen said he would try to learn from the pervious encounters he had against Christie. "The last two to three times we have played, it has been a close encounter. I'll be watching those matches as well, maybe few things (about) what I can do better from the last time and focus on my strength, how I can control the game, how I can play my best," he said.

Set to represent India in his first Olympics, Sen terms this as the biggest tournament of his career and is determined to top the group. "I'm thinking about the first match and also winning the group because it's a quite a tough group. Overall I feel really prepared to go out there and perform my best and the training has been good. "Now it's just a matter of going there, settling in, and being ready for each match. I'll just take one match at a time as of now and give my best at the Olympics," Sen added.

He said, "This is the biggest tournament of my life and the competition here will be very, very tough. Everyone will try to bring their A game and yeah, I'm also preparing the same way that I have to be at my very, very best." Sen said he wasn't thinking too far ahead with the possibility of facing compatriot HS Prannoy in the pre-quarterfinals. "We have seen the draw. It is a potential pre-quarter final but there is a lot of work to do before that. I am really focused on topping the group right now and then let's see what happens," he said.

(With agency inputs)