Joy For Sen Family As Brothers Chirag and Lakshya Named In Indian squad For BATC

From the hilly terrains of Almora to the bylanes of Bangalore and now together in the national team, it has been quite a journey for Sen brothers -- Lakshya and Chirag.

From the hilly terrains of Almora to the bylanes of Bangalore and now together in the national team, it has been quite a journey for Sen brothers -- Lakshya and Chirag. While Lakshya was the first to make a mark on the international circuit, newly-crowned Senior National champion Chirag on Tuesday joined him in the Indian team for the Badminton Asia Team Championships scheduled to held in Shah Alam, Malaysia from February 13-19. "It is a big moment for us as a family to see both of them in the Indian team. From where they started as kids to reach this stage, I feel quite emotional as a father and as a coach. I feel extremely proud," an emotional father DK Sen, also an accomplished coach, told PTI from Bengaluru.

"I am yet to speak to them as they are currently in Kuala Lumpur for the Malaysia Open," added Sen senior, who had stints at NIS Bhopal, Meerut before joining SAI Almora Centre in 1991.

Badminton runs in the Sen family with DK Sen picking up the sport from his father, who won several medals competing in All India Civil services tournaments. He, in fact, played a crucial role in the setting up of the SAI centre in Almora, which has produced some quality players like 2023 national champion Anupama Upadhyaya.

Between the two brothers, it was Chirag who showed early interest in badminton.

"Chirag wanted to be a badminton player, while Lakshya didn't show any interest initially, but he used to come for training and slowly started picking up the sport." When DK Sen decided to send his elder son to the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA) in Bengaluru, Lakshya too accompanied Chirag but since he was too young then, initially they decided against it but looking at the enthusiasm of the little kid they decided to take both the brothers in.