MUMBAI: 20-year-old Lakshya Sen is currently the talk of the town for all the amazing reasons. 

He became the 5th Indian shuttler to qualify for All England Championships on March 19 by defeating defending champion Lee Zii on March 19th. 

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Saina Nehwal, Prakash Nath, Prakash Padukone, and Pullela Gopichand were the shuttlers who achieved this feat before Lakshya. Lakshya couldn't win the final but that does not take away from his accomplishment. 

Check out lesser known facts about the athlete: 

Lakshya was born in 2001. He took on Badminton at a very early age and was the winner of the bronze medal at the Asian Junior Championships in 2016. This did not satisfy his hunger, though and he claimed the top spot 2 years later. 

He also won silver at the singles event at the Youth Olympic Games in 2018 and a gold at the mixed event. 

In 2021, he gave tough competition to Kidambi Srikanth, one of India's top badminton players, and almost earned a seat for the World Championships final. Srikanth inched past him though and gave a stellar performance in the tournament, ending his stint as a runner-up. Lakshya, on the other hand, won a bronze. 

The love for badminton runs in Lakshya's family as his father is a coach while his brother, Chirag Sen, is also a player. It was Chirag, the elder of the two, who took up the sport first. A very young Lakshya would accompany his brother to the tournament, and that is where he first saw the competition up close. 

Lakshya received his training at the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy. 

You've made every Indian incredibly proud by reaching the All-England Final, Lakshya Sen.

We shall all be cheering for you tonight! #AllEngland2022 pic.twitter.com/Pow6jiwxVp

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) March 20, 2022

A decade back when we started supporting a tiny ⁦@lakshya_sen⁩, & shifted him to PPBA Bangalore, Prakash Padukone sir told me that one day this boy will conquer the world. I laughed. But he obviously wasn’t joking. ⁦@OGQ_India⁩ ⁦@ppbaindia⁩ ⁦@Sports_PDCSE⁩ pic.twitter.com/R8cZyrLv35

— Viren Rasquinha (@virenrasquinha) March 19, 2022

What is your take on Lakshya’s badminton career so far? Are you feeling inspired? Hit the comment section. 

Keep reading this space for more updates. 

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CREDIT:  SCOOPWHOOP