Fast-rising Indian shuttler Lakshya Sen made a successful return to competitive badminton, beating Christo Popov in straight games in the opening round of the USD 750,000 Denmark Open, which marked the resumption of the international calender after a coronavirus-forced break of seven months. The 19-year-old Indian, who claimed five titles including two Super 100 tournaments last year, produced a clinical performance to outwit Popov 21-9 21-15 to reach the second round.

He will take on the winner of the match between Denmark's Hans-Kristian Solberg Vittinghus and Belgium's Maxime Moreels. "I moved quite well, that was the key. In the second game he had a lead but I had made a few mistakes. I was able to cut down on them and find my rhythm," Lakshya, who is currently ranked world no.27, was quoted as saying by Badminton World Federation (BWF).