India, Jan. 13 -- There was a certain sense of confidence that Lakshya Sen exuded on Day 1 of the $950,000 BWF India Open here on Tuesday.

The way he stepped on to the court at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, the way he struck the shuttle and the way in which he successfully challenged the umpire's decisions showed that India's No.1 men's singles player had total conviction in what he was doing.

But not without reason. After struggling for most of 2025, the 24-year-old came into his own in the second half of the year by reaching the semis of Japan Open and the final of Hong Kong Open before finally ending his title drought in November when he won the Australian Open in Sydney.

The world No.14 has carried that momentum into the New Ye...