Lakshya Sen maintained his unbeaten streak, notching up a straight-game win over local hope Koki Watanabe to progress to the semifinals of the Japan Open Super 750 badminton tournament on Thursday.

A 2021 world championship bronze medallist, world number 13 Sen registered a 21-15 21-19 victory over Watanabe, ranked 33rd, to make his third successive semifinals, following his exploits in Canada and the United States.