It was a case of so near yet so far for India’s ace men’s shuttler Lakshya Sen, as he fell at the final hurdle of the All England Open Badminton Championships for a second time (after 2022), going down 15-21, 20-22 to Chinese Taipei’s Lin-Chun Yi on this occasion.

The World No. 12 admitted he was proud of his performance in Birmingham, but also felt disheartened, since he had entered the tournament with the belief of going the distance.