Lakshya Sen wants to be 'Virat Kohli of Indian badminton'

Lakshya Sen has revealed his desire to inspire the youngsters in the same way that Virat Kohli has in Indian cricket. Sen scripted history at the Paris Olympics as he became the first Indian male badminton player to reach the semi-finals in history.

However, his dream journey came to a disappointing end with consecutive defeats. In the semi-final he lost to Viktor Axelsen and then in the bronze medal match against Lee Zii Jia.

Despite that, the 23-year-old made the country proud and has set his aim high of becoming the most celebrated athlete in his sport and drawn inspiration from cricketer Virat Kohli.

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“Why not I mean, but again he’s done a lot for Indian cricket. Yes I want to be the Virat Kohli of Indian badminton in coming years,” said Sen on the The Ranveer Show podcast.

Sen also revealed his camaraderie with two-time Olympic gold medallist Axelsen. The Indian star talked about his training in Dubai with the Dane which helped him.

“He has inspired me a lot, the way he conducts himself on and off the court. I had a two-week training period with him where I got to play with him and practice. Again, this Olympics semi final match against him. Yeah, again it has been quite inspiring for me that I played and I know in the match I had him. I had also beaten him in the past. These kind of things motivate me that yes I’m on the right track but again lot of work is there,” he added.