India, Nov. 14 -- It hasn't exactly been an easy season for Lakshya Sen. Yes, he reached the All England Open finals in March but continued to suffer early round exits thereafter. But as the season is drawing to a close, India's ace men's singles shuttler is hitting top form.

Fresh off his triumph at the Hylo Open in Germany at the start of the month, the world No.13 Indian produced another masterclass by advancing to the final of the Japan Masters in Kumamoto. With the win, Sen has become the first-ever Indian to reach the summit clash of the Super 500 tournament since its inception in 2023.

The path to history, however, was hard fought. Sen had to dig deep in a gruelling 70-minute semi-final against Indonesian sixth seed Alwi Farhan b...