Sen, who had previously clinched a bronze medal at the 2021 edition of the Championships, dominated proceedings with scores of 21-11, 21-12 against the 51st ranked Korean player.
Having achieved the 11th seed, Lakshya is anticipated to encounter the challenge of the third-seeded Kunlavut Vitidsarn from Thailand in the subsequent round.
With this achievement, the Indian player avenged his previous loss to the Korean opponent. Jeon Hyeok Jin had emerged victorious in their sole encounter during the Asia Team Championship in 2022.
Later in the day, World No 9 HS Prannoy produced a masterclass as he tamed Indonesia’s Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo 21-9, 21-14 to set up a clash with 2021 champion, Loh Kean Yew of Singapore.
Sen was alert and took the initiatives during the rallies, showing his retrieval skills, speed and shot selection to dominate the proceedings.
The Indian lead 5-1 and slowly kept extending the gap against a struggling Jeon, who lacked the finishing punch during the fast-paced rallies.
Sen entered the interval with 11-6 lead and kept things under a firm grip even after resumption to quickly move to 18-11 before sealing the first game with three straight points.
In the second game, Sen opened up a 4-1 lead before extending it to 10-5 with a whipping forehand return. Another straight jump smash helped the Indian make it 11-5 at the break.
Sen continued to construct his points and got behind the shuttle early to produce clean winners to grab eight match points and converted it in his second attempt.
(With PTI Inputs)
