German Open: Lakshya Sen stuns Olympic champion, reaches final

Mulheim an der Ruhr (Germany): Indian young badminton sensation and world championships bronze medallist Lakshya Sen stunned Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark to enter German Open Super 300 final here on Saturday.

Lakshya defeated Viktor 21-13, 12-21, 22-20 in a thrilling match that lasted for 71 minutes. Prior to his semifinal win over the Dane, the Indian was trailing 0-4 in the head-to-head record.

Lakshya will lock horns with Thai shuttler Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the summit clash.

Earlier, the Indian edged past his compatriot H S Prannoy in the quarterfinals. In the Round-16, he demolished world No. 5 and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Anthony Ginting of Indonesia 21-7, 21-9 in just 34 minutes of play.

The Almora boy, ranked 12 in the world, had trounced the world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore 24-22, 21-17 to win the men's singles title at the Super 500 badminton tournament in January. (UNI)