The defending champion had his first encounter with young Koki Watanabe of Japan, and it went the distance.
Given that Axelsen is in terrific form, winning 38 of his last 39 matches, no one would have expected the Japanese number four to race to a 7-2 lead. He displayed a full arsenal of frontcourt deceptions and the Dane had no answer. Signs of life were seen after the interval but Watanabe took the opening game 21-13.
The second game was a much closer contest. The number two seed was able to up his pace and take back some control of the frontcourt. But it was Watanabe who had the more effective shots at the backcourt, with several smash winners. He continued this trend deep into the second game, was in control of most rallies, but pushed three lifts long to gift crucial points. The Japanese ace looked like the better player for much of the game, but Axelsen took it 21-19 with consistent play.
The pressure mounted on Axelsen; no men’s singles defending champion has ever lost in the first round at the All England!
He had a few nervous errors but kept close enough to Watanabe through the first few points, and the Dane’s play only improved as the contest neared its end. Despite his stellar offensive play, errors continued to creep into Watanabe’s game. He saved three match points before finally going down. Axelsen narrowly escaped with a 13-21 21-19 21-19 win.
- It was a horrible day at the office. To be fair, I think he played a really nice game and it could’ve gone either way today. But I personally felt that I wasn’t at my best. Pretty much everything went wrong – physically, mentally, and strokes were bad. But I managed to win and that’s the most important thing.
Axelsen continues his title attempt against Sai Praneeth B. of India in the second round.
Momota starts his All England campaign strongly
Indian veteran Kashyap Parupalli was occasionally able to take the number one seed off-guard, but the tournament favourite was in control for much of the match. Despite coming into the match with a 4-0 head-to-head in his favour, Momota admitted to pre-match jitters.
- I practiced for a long time and I have prepared for this tournament. I am very happy to win but in the beginning I was a little bit nervous and I'm happy with the result.
In the first game, Momota raced out to a 7-1 lead, before a combination of his nervous mistakes and Parupalli raising his net game brought the Indian back into the match at 7-7. From then on, the Japanese ace coasted to a 21-13 win largely due to Parupalli’s unforced errors from the backcourt. Most of these shots were out by the smallest of margins. Parupalli was feeling the pressure from an in-form Momota.
-I’m in good shape but I could not figure out how to play him, at least at the start, and the beginning of the second game. He’s at a better fitness level and I’m getting there. I had a tough time over the last year, I kept getting injured. It was a lot of niggles, Parupalli explained.
The second game was a different story as Momota retained his form from the previous game, building an eight-point lead by the interval. However, Kashyap bided his time and closed out many rallies with crisp attacking play, powering up as the game went on. He finally caught up to the two-time World Champion at 20-20 but was unable to keep his level up for the last two points. Momota secured his first-round win 21-13 22-20.
Momota next faces Parupalli’s compatriot H.S. Prannoy in the second round.