Lakshya Sen defeated the former world champion Loh Kean Yew to secure his place in the semifinals of the Kumamoto Masters Japan 2025.
Lakshya Sen, who is currently ranked the seventh seed and positioned at world No. 15, outplayed Loh, who is currently positioned No. 9in world rankings. His calm performance helped him to win 21-13, 21-17, in just 40 minutes. With this victory, he extended the lead of head-to-head performance with Loh to 7–6. Sen recently finished the Hong Kong Open in September as runner-up, and is now all set to face Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto in the semifinals.
Lakshya Sen stole the show from the beginning
From the start of the match, Sen was looking in good touch in the opening game. He ended with an 11-8 lead before the interval. His continuous attack helped him to gain the lead of 18-9 before sealing the game with 21-13.
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In the second game, Loh displayed impressive resistance and managed to keep the score tied at 9-9. Sen then elevated his intensity, scoring six consecutive points to pull ahead with a 15-9 lead. Although Loh made an effort to regain momentum and closed the gap to 17-18, Sen maintained his composure during the final moments and concluded the match in straight games.
Improvements in abilities
Day by day, Lakshya Sen’s tactical awareness and pace are becoming stronger, and also his ability to build early momentum, putting pressure on Loh, helped him to win the match against Loh.
Sen took advantage of Loh’s pure performance and built continuous pressure to hesitate in crucial moments. Sen’s continuous, wonderful shot selection outplayed Loh’s, and he also tackled Loh’s attack with very composure.
Though Nishimoto, the semi-finalist, is expected to present a new challenge for Sen, who will look to build on his recent performance.
