Lakshya Sen's Quarter-Final Exit: Indian Hopes Dwindle at All-England Open 2025

Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen exited All-England Open 2025 after losing to Shi Feng Li in the quarter-finals. Sen fought but was overwhelmed by the sixth seed. In women's doubles, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand fell to Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning. PV Sindhu and others exited earlier.

Indian Commonwealth Games champion and Olympian Lakshya Sen has made a disappointing exit from the All-England Open 2025 following a quarter-final loss in the men's singles category. Facing the reigning Asian Games champion Shi Feng Li of China, Sen was defeated 21-10, 21-16 in Birmingham on Friday, according to Olympics.com.

Sen struggled against the sixth seed Shi Feng Li, initially keeping pace in the early exchanges with a 4-3 lead, but then succumbed to a nine-point streak by his opponent. The Indian managed only six additional points in the first game, allowing Shi Feng Li to claim the opener with ease.

In the second game, Sen briefly rallied to a lead of 11-8 at the interval, but Shi Feng Li's superior play sealed the match in 45 minutes. This marks Sen's third loss in seven encounters with Li. Previously, Sen reached the semi-finals of this tournament and contested the final in the preceding year.

In the women's doubles quarter-finals, Indian duo Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand were outplayed 21-14, 21-10 by China's world no.2 pair Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning. Despite trailing by just one point at the mid-game break in the first game, Jolly and Gopichand were eventually overwhelmed by the Chinese pair's strategy and skill.

The tournament proved challenging for India's contingent, as earlier, PV Sindhu was eliminated in the women's singles first round, and on Thursday, Malvika Bansod and the men's doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also exited the competition. Shetty and Rankireddy were forced to withdraw from their round of 16 match due to Shetty's mid-game back muscle strain.

(With inputs from agencies.)