Smart, young and a world beater: can Baddie champ Lakshya Sen net brands?

Lakshya Sen is a prime example of what happens when you invest in non-cricketing talent. On Sunday (January 16, 2022), this 20-year-old shuttler from Almora, Uttarakhand, shocked the reigning world champion, Loh Kean Yew of Singapore, to win his maiden Super 500 title - the Yonex-Sunrise India Open in New Delhi.

It was Sen's second major win at the senior level. He won a bronze medal at the 2021 World Championships held at the Palacio de los Deportes Carolina Marín in Huelva, Spain.

One can say with absolute certainty that badminton is the second most popular and successful sport in India after cricket, and, perhaps, the best individual sport.

Just look at the likes of PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal, who have won medals at the Olympics, Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games. The men have also made their mark. Parupalli Kashyap won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games. Srikanth Kidambi bagged medals at the World Championships as well as the Commonwealth Games.

What is interesting to note is that all these shuttlers come from the academy run by Pullela Gopichand, former world number one shuttler and the winner of the prestigious All England Open Badminton Championships in 2001.

Sen, on the other hand, has trained at the badminton academy of the legendary Prakash Padukone, who is the father of Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone. Prakash, like Gopichand, achieved the number one world ranking and was also victorious at the All England Open Badminton Championships way back in 1980.

Thanks to such victories, various brands have started showing interest in these shuttlers now.

Back to Sen, who is young, relatable to the Gen Z cohort, and born in the age of instant virality. His victory at the Yonex-Sunrise India Open created quite a splash on social media and his name reached millions of smartphones almost instantly.

“Age is on his side. So, many brands across categories looking to target youngsters, could be a great fit for him,” suggests Tuhin Mishra, managing director and co-founder, Baseline Ventures, a sports management firm that manages the likes of Sindhu, Srikanth Kadambi, and cricketer Smriti Mandhana.

Vinit Karnik, head of sports, esports & entertainment at GroupM South Asia, feels that the Yonex-Sunrise India Open victory is a great start for Sen. Such wins keep athletes going and help them to stay motivated.

“He is a top-class talent and certainly has the potential to become the poster boy of Indian badminton. He will have to cover some distance before unlocking his value from a brand perspective.”

Karnik feels that consistency matters. “The reason why we only see Saina or Sindhu as brand endorsers is because they are consistent champion players and have been world-beaters for a while now. If Lakshya gets a couple of more consistent wins, then we will see a lot of advertiser interest in him.”

The rise of individual athletes

We have always looked at the Indian cricket team for international victories which, in turn, made the cricketers the muses of advertisers. But ever since individual athletes won at the Olympics, has the trend upended? Are we at a stage where athletes (of individual sports) will appear as brand endorsers for a longer period of time after a major tournament win?

Karnik tells afaqs! that barring tennis players and golfers, “individual sports tend to peak worldwide only when there is an event like the Olympics or the Commonwealth Games or something equivalent.”

We’ve seen how javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who struck gold at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, now endorses brands like Disney BYJU'S Early Learn app, Gatorade, CRED, among others.

Karnik adds that team sports, like football, cricket, baseball, basketball, etc., are more popular across the world, from media rights and endorsement standpoint.

For Mishra of Baseline Ventures, individual athletes hit the limelight in India after the Rio Olympics in 2016. And, while “winning is important, an athlete needs a good company to manage, sell, and market him or her.”

Sindhu, who is managed by Baseline Ventures, endorses brands like Visa, BYJU'S, Nokia, Stayfree, PNB, Hero MotoCorp, and Bank of Baroda.

Mishra feels that many athletes, after their victories, wait for the brands to come to them, but they don't. “Their (the athletes') agencies need to go and sell them. Brands need to be convinced to believe in these athletes. They need to know the whole story.”

The brands in India mostly reach out to cricketers, like former captain Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni (in his prime), and to some extent Rohit Sharma, the current men’s ODI and T20 team captain.

Sen has age on his side. With consistent victories, he will definitely attract advertiser interest too.

Cover Image credits: bwfworldtour

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