Lakshya Sen rediscovered his sharpest touch on Sunday, storming to the Australian Open Super 500 title with a straight-games dismantling of Japan’s Yushi Tanaka, a result that ended months of struggle for the young Indian shuttler.

The 24-year-old from Almora, who has been working his way back to form following a disappointing fourth-place finish at the Paris Olympics, produced his most complete week of the season to secure his first title of 2025. Sen overpowered Tanaka 21-15, 21-11 in just 38 minutes, sealing the win with a gesture that captured the moment, fingers in ears, shutting out a year’s worth of noise and doubt.

A bronze-medallist at the 2021 World Championships, Sen had

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last lifted a Super 300 title at the Syed Modi International in Lucknow in 2024. A higher-tier crown had proved elusive since his Canada Open victory that same year, despite a near miss at the Hong Kong Super 500 in September where he finished runner-up.

Tanaka, ranked world No. 26 and winner of the Orléans Masters and the US Open, both Super 300 events, arrived with form on his side but struggled to match Sen’s pace, precision and control. The Indian’s length control was clinical, his net play crisp and his movement purposeful throughout the contest.

With this win, Sen became only the second Indian shuttler to claim a BWF World Tour title this season, following Ayush Shetty’s maiden Super 300 triumph at the US Open earlier in the year. 

Also read: Lakshya Sen cruises to quarters in Japan Masters

India’s top doubles pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, had also made finals at the Hong Kong and China Masters, while Kidambi Srikanth had finished runner-up at the Malaysia Masters.

Sen opened with confidence, moving to a 6-3 lead as Tanaka faltered with repeated errors, drives into the net, mistimed lifts and shots drifting wide. A 35-shot rally ended with the Japanese shuttler again hitting the net, and although a lucky net cord broke Sen’s run, the Indian carried a 10-7 buffer into the interval.

Chants of “Lakshya! Lakshya!” echoed around the arena as the sizeable Indian contingent buoyed him on. Sen tightened his grip after the break, dominating flat exchanges and denying Tanaka the lift required for his trademark smashes. A backhand smash and a sharp cross-court winner helped Sen stretch the gap to 17-13 before Tanaka handed over the opening game with two long errors.

The second game proved even more one-sided. Sen’s pace remained relentless, his returns fast and flat, while Tanaka’s inconsistency deepened. The Japanese trailed 4-8, then 5-10, as Sen’s cross-court drives and thunderous smashes pierced through his defence.

Sen judged the backline to perfection as Tanaka floated shuttles long, and a tight net exchange pushed the Indian ahead 13-6. With Tanaka frequently misfiring, Sen surged to 19-8, earning 10 match points. He missed the first with a net error but closed out the final next point with a crisp cross-court return to lift the title.