A BTS (behind the scenes) reel will not show the physio’s inflatable bed procured from Finland for Rs 2 lacs, the progressive increase in squat strength, the vendors sourced at every venue for ice to fill the baths and the network of physios who show up at any port of call, if Lakshya Sen’s regular one can’t land a visa. What the world sees is clips of his eye-popping defense leading to titles.

The joke amongst Sen’s team on down-days when results didn’t tally with the training effort he was putting in, had been about how the Indian could pull off “an Alcaraz” at will. The reference was to tennis phenom Carlos Alcaraz whose mind-bending reflex retrieves, creative counterpunching and intuitive read on tennis, made for great viewing – win or lose. This last week at Sydney’s Australian Open,

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