Lakshya Sen's campaign at the China Masters 2025 came to an abrupt end as he suffered astraight-games defeat at the hands of France's Toma Junior Popov. The Indian shuttler, who was seeded eighth, couldn't replicate the form that saw him reach the final of the Hong Kong Open recently. Popov dominated the match, winning 21-11, 21-10 in just 30 minutes.
Sen, a Paris Olympics semi-finalist, had been looking to build on his momentum from the Hong Kong Open. However, he was unable to find his rhythm against Popov. The Frenchman started strong, establishing an early lead in the first game. Sen's attacks lacked their usual sharpness, and he struggled to defend against Popov's powerful smashes.
The second game followed a similar pattern, with Popov maintaining control. Sen was unable to mount a comeback, and Popov closed out the match comfortably. It was a disappointing result for Sen, who had been hoping to continue his strong run of form.
This season has been inconsistent for Sen. He had a first-round exit in the VICTOR China Open 2025. While he demonstrated glimpses of his potential at the All England Open and reached the semi-finals at the Macau Open, he has also faced early exits in other tournaments. At the BWF World Championships 2025, he was drawn against Shi Yu Qi in the first round and lost. After the World Championship disappointment, he reached his first final since last November at the Hong Kong Open.
Other Indian players also had a mixed start to the China Masters 2025. PV Sindhu progressed to the next round with a dominant victory over Denmark's Julie Dawall Jakobsen. Sindhu won her match 21-5, 21-10 in just 27 minutes. However, Ayush Shetty lost to Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei in a closely contested match. The 20-year-old Shetty fought hard but ultimately lost 21-19, 12-21, 21-16. In mixed doubles, Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde were defeated by Japan's Yuichi Shimogami and Sayaka Hobara.
The China Masters 2025 is a Super 750 tournament with a total prize money of USD 1,250,000. The tournament is taking place at the Shenzhen Arena from September 16 to 21.
