Lakshya runs out of steam in All England Open singles final against a hot Lin Chun-Yi

It was yet another heartbreak for Lakshya Sen. If it was Viktor Axelsen who dashed the Indian’s hopes in the title clash in 2022, on Sunday it was Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi

Lakshya’s gritty run at the All England Open Badminton Championships 2026 ended in the final as he lost to Lin Chun-Yi in straight games at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.

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The Indian shuttler, who is ranked 12th in the men’s singles, lost to world No. 11 Lin Chun-Yi 21-15, 22-20 in the summit clash which lasted just under an hour.

Resilient Lakshya overcomes Victor, to meet Lin Chun-Yi in final of All England Open

Earlier in the tournament, Lakshya had knocked out world No. 1 and last year’s champion Shi Yuqi of the People’s Republic China in the opening round and sixth-ranked Li Shi Feng, the reigning Asian Games champion, in the quarterfinals.

Lakshya also had to go through a gruelling 97-minute semifinal clash against Canada’s Victor Lai on Saturday, battling through cramps and blisters to reach the summit clash.

Lakshya was pushed to the backfoot early on in the second game, when his blistering issue aggravated, as Lai took a four-point lead into the break. However, the Indian shuttler kept chipping away at the lead and finally drew level at 16-all. Lai, though, held his nerves under pressure to force a decider.

The third game saw Lakshya, now also suffering from cramps, take the initiative from the get-go and raced to a 16-14 lead. Lai managed to claw his way back into the contest with three successive points, reducing the deficit to just two. Unfazed, Lakshya battled on and showed brilliant composure under pressure to win his first-ever meeting against Lai and secured a title shot in the process.

Lin Chun-Yi, who beat former world champion and Paris 2024 Olympics silver medallist Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand in the semifinals, raced off the blocks early in the opening game and used his smashes to peg the Indian player back.

Lakshya found it difficult to match up with Lin

Lakshya, after spending over five-and-a-half hours on the court on way to the final, found it difficult to match up to the physically imposing Chinese Taipei player, who comparatively had a less taxing road to the title clash.

Lakshya, who was a semifinalist at Paris 2024, dug deep in the second game in search of a response. Despite not being at his best physically, the 24-year-old Indian shuttler reached into his bag of tricks and used his guile to counter Lin Chun-Yi’s power.

Lakshya Sen’s run to the title match, however, made him only the second Indian shuttler to qualify for two All England finals. Padukone won the crown in 1980 and finished runner-up a year later. Pic: Badminton Photo

Lakshya took a 9-4 lead at one stage but the Chinese Taipei player fought his way back as both engaged in intense rallies. In what turned out to be a blockbuster ending to the contest, Lakshya managed to save a match point but eventually went down in straight games.

The result saw Lin Chun-Yi extend his head-to-head record against Lakshya to 5-0. He also emerged victorious in the quarterfinals of the India Open earlier this year on way to winning the title.

This was Lakshya’s second defeat in an All England Open final within a span of four years. He also earned a title clash in 2022 but lost out to Viktor Axelsen.

Prakash Padukone and Pullela Gopichand remain the only Indian badminton players to have won the prestigious All England badminton title so far.

Lakshya’s run to the title match, however, made him only the second Indian shuttler to qualify for two All England finals. Padukone won the crown in 1980 and finished runner-up a year later.