India’s badminton international Lakshya Sen failed to win a medal in the Paris Olympics after losing in the match for third place. After losing to Danish player Viktor Axelsen (20-22, 14-21) in the semis, Lakshya gave away a crucial match to Malasiya’s Lee Zii Jia (21-13, 16-21, 11-21). Winning that would have had him a bronze medal in Paris.
India’s badminton coach, Prakash Padukone, had criticized the disappointing run of his team in the 2026 Olympics. Recently, former Indian cricketer and commentator Sunil Gavaskar came into the spotlight after brutally ripping Lakshya Sen after his Olympic exit.
Sunil Gavaskar Brutally Digs At Lakshya Sen
In a column for Sportstar, Gavaskar was not at all soft with his words. According to him, despite getting all the support from the coach and the government, Lakshya Sen was a ‘Graden mein ghoomne wala’ in the bronze medal match. Gavaskar gave credit for this inference to Indian captain Rohit Sharma.
“Prakash Padukone told me about Lakshya Sen in 2017–18. He was taking care of his growth as a badminton player. He was by his side as the young badminton player was close to winning an Olympic medal,” he wrote in his column for Sportstar.
“To see him going despite being 20-17 and 7-0 at one stage in the semi-final and then lose the bronze medal match after winning the first set must have been difficult to accept. Prakash, Vimal Kumar, the BAI, and the government had done everything possible, but Lakshya Sen was, in the famous words of Rohit Sharma, ‘Graden mein ghoomne wala,” Gavaskar further wrote.
Gavaskar also bashed the excuses that are made for not winning medals at the Olympics.
“Prakash doesn’t say much, but his frank comments after the disappointment in the badminton circuit surprised many. Making excuses is where our country will win gold medals every single time, so his opinion was right.”
To get the latest sports updates and highlights, check out The100Sports, and Follow us on Twitter