NEW DELHI: Star shuttler Lakshya Sen faced a disappointing exit from the
Indonesia Open Super 1000
tournament in Jakarta on Friday, losing to Denmark's Anders Antonsen in the quarterfinals of the men's singles event.
The world no.14 put up a valiant fight but ultimately succumbed to a 22-24, 18-21 defeat against the fifth-ranked Antonsen in a grueling match that lasted just over an hour.
With the defeat, India's challenge ended at the tournament.
The first game was a closely contested affair, with neither player willing to give an inch.
Antonsen took an early 4-0 lead, but Sen fought back to level the scores at 5-5 and then extended his lead to 15-11.
However, the Dane used his reach and tired out Sen with long rallies to level the scores at 16-16. The two players fought tooth and nail till 22 points before the Indian faltered to hand the first game to his opponent.
The second game was equally intense, with both Sen and Antonsen playing their hearts out until 18 points.
However, it was Sen who faltered in the end, committing a few unforced errors while Antonsen kept his cool to win three straight points and seal the match in his favor.
With this victory, Antonsen improves his head-to-head record against Sen to 3-2. He will now face Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn, the eighth seed, in the semifinals of the tournament.
(With inputs from PTI)
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