Lakshya Sen Scripts History with Maiden Kumamoto Masters Title

Kumamoto: India's Lakshya Sen produced a remarkable comeback to defeat Japan's Koki Watanabe in the men's singles final and became the first Indian shuttler to win the Kumamoto Masters title since the tournament's inception in 2023.

Lakshya overcame an opening-game setback to beat the home favourite 13-21, 21-18, 21-14 in a hard-fought contest lasting one hour and four minutes at the Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium on Sunday.

The victory marked Lakshya's second consecutive BWF Super 500 title following his triumph at the Hylo Open in Germany earlier this month. It was also the first time in his career that he had won two BWF World Tour titles in a single season, taking his overall tally to six.

Having already made history by becoming the first Indian to reach the tournament's final, Lakshya completed an impressive campaign by claiming the title.

Watanabe started aggressively and dominated the opening game, winning 21-13 without allowing the Indian to take the lead. However, Lakshya regrouped in the second game and established a 13-10 advantage before producing a six-point winning streak to move ahead comfortably.

The Japanese shuttler fought back with seven consecutive points, narrowing the gap to 19-17 and putting Lakshya under pressure. The Indian, however, held his nerve to close out the game 21-18 and take the match into a decider.

The third game began with both players trading points, but Lakshya gradually gained control after the score was level at 5-5. He moved ahead 11-7 at the interval and maintained his advantage to seal the championship with a 21-14 win.

Lakshya enjoyed a relatively smooth run through the first three rounds, winning all his matches in straight games. He faced a tougher challenge in the semifinals, where he defeated sixth seed Alwi Farhan in three games to book his place in the final.

The Kumamoto triumph was Lakshya's third BWF World Tour final appearance of the year. He had earlier finished runner-up at the All England Open in March before turning his campaign around with consecutive Super 500 victories.

The latest title has also provided a significant boost to his chances of qualifying for the BWF World Tour Finals 2026, scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China. Lakshya earned 9,200 ranking points from the victory, strengthening his position in the race for a place at the season-ending tournament.

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