The Paris Olympics 2024 knockout is now set for an exciting all-Indian clash between Lakshya Sen and H.S. Prannoy in what had already been a landmark moment for badminton in India. Lakshya Sen, though, stole the limelight of that round by defeating the third seed and medal contender Jonatan Christie of Indonesia during the group stages in a display of his scorching talent. Prannoy, however, had to fight a difficult path to victory over Le Duc Phat of Vietnam in three intense games.
Road to the Quarterfinals
It is not about a patriotic battle; one of these players will advance to the quarterfinals to face the winner of the possible encounter between the fifth seed, Kodai Naraoka, and the 12th seed, Chou Tien Chen. Lakshya and Prannoy are both standing in contention to create history by picking up India’s first-ever men’s badminton medal at the Olympics, providing an added layer of intrigue to their showdown.
Represented India in Other Disciplines
The round of 16 is not only reserved for men’s singles in the representation from India. There is also a representation in women’s singles through seasoned P.V. Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medalist, and in men’s doubles through Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, a dynamic duo that made it through the group stages.
Head-to-Head Record
| Date | Tournament | Player 1 | Player 2 | Winner |
| Tue 1/17/2023 | India Open 2023 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | Lakshya Sen |
| Wed 1/11/2023 | Malaysia Open 2023 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | HS Prannoy |
| Thu 10/20/2022 | Denmark Open 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | Lakshya Sen |
| Thu 8/25/2022 | World Championships 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | HS Prannoy |
| Wed 6/15/2022 | Indonesia Open 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | HS Prannoy |
| Fri 3/11/2022 | German Open 2022 | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | Lakshya Sen |
| Fri 1/14/2022 | India Open | HS Prannoy | Lakshya Sen | Lakshya Sen |
Now, coming to the head-to-head record, Lakshya Sen is marginally ahead of H.S. Prannoy with a record of 4-3. Their last battle was at the India Open in January 2023, when Lakshya dominated and won comprehensively 21-14, 21-15. In this match, two stalwarts will face off against each other, and both will come up with their best performance in the court.
The Sportz Planet Desk,
Atharva Shetye
