Lagatar24 Desk
Suncheon, April 5: Lakshya Sen of India came back from a game down to beat Choi Ji Hoon of Korea 14-21, 21-16, 21-18 in the first round of the Korea Open Badminton Championship, which lasted one hour and two minutes and was played at Palma Stadium.
The Indians, ranked No. 9 in the world, had a fright in the first game, losing 14-21 to World No. 498. After tying the game at 14-14, the Korean shuttler pulled the game away from India’s Sen, winning seven consecutive points.
The World Championship medalist shuttler rallied to win the second game 21-16 to tie the match at one game apiece. Both players were tied at 6-6 when Lakshya Sen won four straight points to grab the lead and win the game.
The Korean shuttler established an early 9-5 lead in the third and final game, but the World No. 9 Indian won five points in a row to take a 10-9 advantage. Both shuttlers were deadlocked at 18-18 in a tough game, but Lakshya Sen lifted his game to win three consecutive points and take the final game 21-18.
In the Men’s Doubles tournament, India’s Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala fell 14-21, 19-21 to Indonesia’s Pramudya Kusumawardana and Yeremia Erich Yoche Yacob Rambitan.
In another men’s doubles match, India’s Navaneeth Bokka and B. Sumeeth Reddy were defeated 14-21, 12-21 by Malaysia’s Yew Sin Ong and Ee Yi Teo.