It was deja vu for Lakshya Sen at the India Open. And not the good kind. He’d have come in hoping for a repeat of the 2022 season, where he went on to win the title. Instead, it was a reminder of 2023 where he lost in the second round. That day last year, he lost in the second round after taking the lead in the match against Rasmus Gemke of Denmark. In the decider, he started poorly and trailed 1-8, never recovering from that. This year, he lost in the opening round against his good friend Priyanshu Rajawat. Once again in the decider, he trailed 1-9, and that made all the difference in the end.

“The start of the decider could have been much better,” Lakshya said afterward, much as he had done a year back. “Credit to him, but a bunch of unforced errors from me. I think consistently playing my natural game (is where I am struggling at the moment), giving away too many loose points. I do come with a game-plan and to an extent, able to play to that. To do that over three games, I still have to work a lot on being patient and waiting for right chances to attack.”