After Vinesh Phogat, if there was any bigger missed opportunity for India to bag a medal at the Paris Olympics 2024, it was Lakshya Sen missing out on a podium finish. India were hurt by as many as six 4th-place finishes at the Paris Games, with Arjun Babuta and Mirabai Chanu missing bronze by a whisker, but none more painful than Lakshya, who – albeit unfortunately – missed the opportunity of winning gold and then a chance to bring back home a bronze, going down to Viktor Axelsen in the semifinal and then Lee Zii Jia in the bronze-medal match.

Lakshya was devastated after the result, as with him, India's hope of winning an Olympic medal at Paris went up in smoke. As words struggled to come out of Lakshya's mouth, his coach Prakash Padukone did not mince his, and in a brutal reality check, urged the shuttlers, including the 22-year-old Lakshya, to take more responsibilities. If that wasn't enough to highlight Padukone's strict approach, the fact that he took Lakshya's phone during the Olympics and kept it with him only reiterates that belief.

"During matches, Prakash sir took away my phone. Said won’t get back till matches are done," Lakshya told Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who on Thursday, August 15, 2024, hosted the Indian Olympics contingent.

To this, PM Modi quickly replied, "If Prakash sir is so strict, will send him next time too."

Lakshya was hard done by after the first game itself as his win against Kevin Cordon was 'deleted' after the Guatemalan shuttler had to withdraw due to injury. From there, to have beaten Julien Carraggi, Jonatan Christie, HS Prannoy and Chou Tien-Chen en route to the semi-final was an astonishing effort, nonetheless. With PV Sindhu and Satwik-Chirag ousted, Lakshya was India's best and last hope of a medal in badminton. For a place in the final, Lakshya looked in good nick before losing momentum – squandered three game points in the first game and a 7-0 lead in the second – to be handed a straight-game defeat by Axelsen.

How Lakshya lost the plot

A day later, with the hopes of a bronze still alive, Lakshya seemed to be on course, winning the first game. However, losing nine straight points in the second game opened the doors for Lee, and he broke it down by notching up a stunning come-from-behind win. An opponent over whom Lakshya enjoyed a 4-1 head-to-head lead heading into the contest, Lee countered a one game deficit to win the next two and seal the win.

And just like that, India's 12-year-streak of winning at least one medal at the Olympics Games – which began with Saina Nehwal's bronze in London and taken forward by PV Sindhu's silver and bronze at Rio and Tokyo – was broken. But Lakshya would take heart from the fact that someone like Axelsen himself, predicted the Indian a strong contender for a gold medal at the Los Angeles Olympics in four years' time.

"It was a good learning experience for me. It was heartbreaking as well I was so close to win a medal. But I will make sure that I will do well in the future," he added.

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