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Lakshya Sen and the Indian badminton team that won on their own money

SAI withheld funds for four Super 500-plus events, and a coach told his best player to suck it up.

Had Lakshya Sen withdrawn, he would have had to pay USD 5,000 as fine to the Badminton World Federation. (Badminton Photo)

5 min read Nov 8, 2026 08:57 AM IST First published on: Nov 8, 2026 at 08:57 AM IST

When the funding issue for the European tournaments emerged, coach Vimal Kumar told Lakshya Sen, however arbitrary it felt, that the champion athlete needed to suck it up.…