06 May,2026 09:52 AM IST | Mumbai | Ronan Carvalho
Lakshya Sen
Veteran shuttler HS Prannoy, who was part of India's bronze medal-winning team at the recently concluded Thomas Cup, believes Lakshya Sen's absence completely shifted the balance of the semi-final against France, which India lost 0-3.
World No. 11 Sen, India's highest ranked singles player, suffered an elbow injury during his quarter-final match with Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen and could not recover in time to face France's World No. 4 Christo Popov, who defeated an inexperienced Ayush Shetty instead.
Had Sen been fit, Prannoy reckons he could've taken down Popov and given India a chance to take the tie deep by unleashing their star doubles duo of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy.
"Lakshya's absence in the semi-finals made the difference for us. Having beaten Chen [World No. 6] a day before, he was gaining in confidence. His match against Popov could have turned the table in our favour, because I believe Lakshya could've beaten Popov, and then Ayush would've faced Alex Lanier and he could have definitely gotten a win too. It would have given us a chance to play the fourth and fifth match [the two doubles bouts], where we were stronger than them," Prannoy said during a virtual media interaction organised by the Sports Authority of India (SAI) on Tuesday.
Despite not being able to replicate India's 2022 gold medal win, Prannoy, Sen, and Shetty, all believe this is no mean feat. "Obviously, we would have liked to win a medal of a different colour, but with the journey we've had over the years, this medal is very special for us," said Mumbai boy Shetty.
Sen, whose participation in the upcoming Thailand Open is uncertain, said: "I'm happy with the way we played and fought in the tournament."
"This medal is huge. To go out there and get the bronze medal wasn't easy because we were seeded eighth. We were never a [medal] contender. Entire credit goes to the team, the way we stuck together⦠we really wanted to prove ourselves," concluded Prannoy.
