Lakshya Sen outwitted Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn 21-18, 12-21, 21-19 and progressed to the semifinals of the Hylo Open Super 500 badminton tournament here on Friday.
World No. 21 Lakshya prevailed in a see-saw battle over three-time junior world champion Vitidsarn and joined fellow Indian K. Srikanth in the semifinals.
Lakshya, a 2019 champion, will face Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew next.
The 20-year-old, who had claimed five titles in 2019, had a decent outing at the Denmark Open and French Open with second round and quarterfinal finishes respectively.
The shuttler from Almora was forced to pull out of the event last year after his father and coach D.K. Sen tested positive for COVID-19.
Lakshya came into the match with a 2-3 head-to-head record and battled for an hour and 18 minutes against Vitidsarn, who is ranked 24th in the world.
