Kuala Lumpur, Jan. 8 -- India's Lakshya Sen exited the Malaysia Open 2026 badminton tournament after suffering a straight-games defeat in the men's singles pre-quarterfinals at the Axiata Arena on Thursday.
World No. 13 Lakshya went down 22-20, 21-15 to Hong Kong China's Lee Cheuk Yiu, ranked 18th, in a 53-minute contest, as per Olympics.com.
The Indian shuttler began brightly, taking an 11-9 lead at the mid-game interval of the opening game and earning four game points, but failed to capitalise as Lee reeled off six consecutive points to snatch the game in a tie-break.
Lakshya again held the advantage in the second game, leading 11-8 at the interval, but could manage only four more points thereafter as Lee took control to seal the match...