Lakshya Sen ends title drought, emerges Australian Open champion
Sydney (PTI): A fluent Lakshya Sen ended a difficult stretch on the international circuit by clinching his first title of the 2025 season, defeating Japan's Yushi Tanaka in the Australian Open men's singles final, here Sunday.
The 24-year-old from Almora, enduring a tough phase after finishing fourth at the Paris Olympics, capped a resurgent week with a commanding 21-15 21-11 win over 26-year-old Tanaka.
Emerging champion after a 38-minute final of the USD 475,000 Super 500 event, the Indian celebrated the moment by putting his fingers in his ears.
"I have seen a lot of ups and downs this season, with a few injuries at the start of the season. But I kept my hard work going throughout the season and I am very happy to end the season on a good note," said Lakshya.
"I'm very excited, looking forward to the next season now and I am really happy with the way I played today and this week."
Lakshya, a 2021 World Championships bronze-medallist, had last won a Super 300 title at the Syed Modi International in Lucknow in 2024.
However, a top-tier crown had eluded him since his triumph at the Canada Open the same year, though he came close at the Hong Kong Super 500 in September when he finished runner-up.
Facing world No. 26 Tanaka, winner of two Super 300 titles this year at the Orléans Masters and the US Open, Lakshya displayed control, sharp placement and clean execution, wrapping up the contest without dropping a game.
With this victory, the reigning Commonwealth Games champion became only the second Indian to win a BWF World Tour title this season, following Ayush Shetty’s maiden Super 300 triumph at the US Open.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty had reached the finals at the Hong Kong and China Masters, while Kidambi Srikanth also logged a runner-up finish at the Malaysia Masters earlier in the year.
Lakshya made a confident start, opening up a 6-3 lead as Tanaka committed a flurry of errors -- hitting into the net, going wide and overcooking his lifts.
A 35-shot rally ended with the Japanese shuttler again finding the net, before a lucky net cord finally broke Lakshya’s run of points.
Two crisp cross-court smashes on either flank had Lakshya on the floor as Tanaka closed the gap to 7-9, but the Indian carried a three-point cushion into the mid-game interval after the Japanese sprayed another shot to the net.
Chants of 'Lakshya! Lakshya' rang around the arena during the mid-game intervals, with a sizable Indian crowd turning up to support him.
The Indian tightened his grip thereafter, dominating the net exchanges and keeping the shuttle flat and deep, denying Tanaka the length he needed to unleash his whipping smashes as he moved ahead 13-9.
Tanaka responded with a powerful smash, followed by a long error from Lakshya and a sharp net shot to make it 12-13. But Lakshya again pulled away, opening up a four-point lead at 17-13 with a backhand smash and another fierce cross-court winner.
Tanaka tried to stay in the hunt but two long errors handed Lakshya five game points. The Indian converted immediately as Tanaka drove another shuttle to the net.
Lakshya said making a good beginning to match was important.
"It was important to have a good start, and keep the momentum in the last set because it was quite even in the first one.
"I got a good lead and I could finish it off. The second set started on a good note and then I just kept the lead to finish the match," the Indian noted.
The second game turned into a one-sided affair as Lakshya kept up the intensity, continuing to play fast, flat returns even as Tanaka tried stretching him with his trademark whipping smashes but those were far too few to pose any challenge.
The Japanese overdid his attack and his inconsistency overshadowed his good moments as Lakshya moved ahead 8-4.
A flat cross-court drive pushed Lakshya to 10-5, and he secured a six-point lead at the interval with another thunderous smash.
Lakshya showed excellent backline judgement as Tanaka repeatedly floated the shuttle long. After winning a tight net duel, the Indian extended the lead to 13-6. Tanaka struggled to withstand Lakshya's power, continuing to hit wide and into the net as the lead swelled to 17-8.
Lakshya then hammered a barrage of smashes to move to 19-8 and soon earned 10 match points with another fine shot near the net. He squandered one with a net error but sealed the title with a sharp cross-court return.
The Indian said his focus was on winning each point, rather than getting carried away.
"On the moment he knew he could win: In the second set I was quite far off in the lead, but I didn't want to get too inside my head so I wouldn't relax too much. In the back of my mind it was there but I was just trying to focus on playing one point at a time," he said.
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Jai Bhim: Slogan that energised Dalits was first given at this central Maharashtra village
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (PTI): 'Jai Bhim': These two words have come to symbolise the awakening and empowerment of the Dalit community in independent India, but not many people know how it originated.
The slogan, which also encapsulates the immense reverence in which Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar is held, was first raised at the Makranpur Parishad, a conference organised at Makranpur village in Kannad teshil of today's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district in Maharashtra.
Ambedkar, the chief architect of India's Constitution, died on December 6, 1956.
Bhausaheb More, the first president of the Scheduled Castes Federation of Marathwada, organised the first Makranpur Parishad on December 30, 1938.
Dr Ambedkar spoke at the conference and asked the people not to support the princely state of Hyderabad under which much of central Maharashtra then fell, said Assistant Commissioner of Police Pravin More, Bhausaheb's son.
"When Bhausaheb stood up to speak, he said every community has its own deity and they greet each other using the name of that deity. Dr Ambedkar showed us the path of progress, and he is like God to us. So henceforth, we should say 'Jai Bhim' while meeting each other. The people responded enthusiastically. A resolution accepting 'Jai Bhim' as the community's slogan was also passed," More told PTI.
"My father came in contact with Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in his early years. Bhausaheb was aware of the atrocities the Nizam state committed on Dalits. He told Ambedkar about these atrocities, including the pressure to convert. Dr Ambedkar was strongly against these atrocities, and he decided to attend the 1938 conference," he said.
As Ambedkar was against the princely states, he was banned from giving speeches in the Hyderabad state but was allowed to travel through its territories. The Shivna river formed the border between Hyderabad and British India. Makranpur was chosen as the venue for the first conference because it was on the banks of Shivna but lay in the British territory, ACP More said.
The stage made of bricks, from where Dr Ambedkar addressed the conference, still stands. The conference is organised on December 30 every year to carry forward Ambedkar's thought, and the tradition was not discontinued even in 1972 when Maharashtra experienced one of the worst droughts in it history.
"My grandmother pledged her jewellery for the conference expenses. People from Khandesh, Vidarbha and Marathwada attended it. Despite a ban imposed by the Nizam's police, Ambedkar's followers crossed the river to attend the event," said ACP More.
"This is the 87th year of Makranpur Parishad. We have deliberately retained the venue as it helps spread Ambedkar's thought in rural areas," he added.
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