Lakshya Sen lost to Lin Chun-yi in the All England Open final

It was not meant to be for Lakshya Sen. He became the second Indian man after his mentor, Prakash Padukone, to reach the All England final twice. But he also became the first Indian man to lose the summit clash twice. The 24-year-old gave it his all in a memorable campaign, but ultimately lost the big final to familiar foe Lin Chun-yi in straight games on Sunday in Birmingham.

While it was heartbreak for the Indian shuttler, Lin scripted history beating Lakshya 21-15, 22-20, becoming the first man from Chinese Taipei to win the prestigious Super 1000 tournament. India's drought continues, with Pullela Gopichand remaining the last shuttler from the country to



win the All England Open title back in 2001.

For all of India's transformation into a badminton powerhouse, the All England has remained strangely elusive. Since Saina Nehwal's emergence, Indian players have collected Olympic medals, Commonwealth Games medals and Asian Games medals. They have even lifted the Thomas Cup.

Yet the sport's oldest tournament continues to slip through Indian fingers.

Lakshya fell to a familiar foe, losing to Lin for the fifth time in as many meetings. Earlier this year, Lin had defeated Lakshya in a three-setter at the India Open before going on to win the Super 750 title in New Delhi.