Reigning champion Viktor Axelsen was made to sweat in round two, while his Danish teammates Mathias Christiansen/ Niclas Nøhr score their biggest win together.
Axelsen was unhappy with his performance yesterday, having to go the distance with Japan’s speedy Koki Watanabe in a 65-minute tussle. Today he faced India’s Sai Praneeth, who in their previous two encounters posed no trouble for the tall Dane.
Axelsen, who has had lower back issues in the past, was seen stretching and contorting his body during the match against Watanabe. Although not mentioned in his post-match interview, this may be a challenge he needs to overcome if he is to retain his title this week.
Sai Praneeth gained a small lead in the opening game, but after the break, he kicked away to 16-10. Axelsen pulled some points back but it was a 21-15 game for India.
Sai Praneeth could smell blood and shot off to a 5-0 lead in the second. Axelsen today is a much more resilient player and did not panic, and found his rhythm when it mattered, winning 21-12.
Praneeth battled hard in the opening exchanges of the third, but Axelsen ultimately had too many weapons and in a similar pattern to the second game, secured the match with a 21-12 game.
- I feel slightly better than yesterday. I don't feel I played the most beautiful badminton of my career today but a win is a win and I'm really happy I managed to get through today. I think I was trailing behind 5-0 in the second game, playing some good rallies and getting the right length in my shots was key and that's one of the things I managed to turn around and that was obviously really important for me.
Axelsen will face Sitthikom Thammasin in the quarterfinal, who received a walkover from Jonatan Christie.
Mathias Christiansen/Niclas Nohr: the new European threat?
The two Danes who perhaps are more known for their exploits in mixed doubles, came together as a partnership in 2020. After a tough beginning, the duo is putting together more and more exciting results.
Today they faced Olympic silver medallists, Goh V Shem/Tan Wee Kiong, who overturned their previous loss to Lamsfuss/ Seidel and looked like they were wanting to prove that they still have what it takes to win big.
Christiansen/ Nøhr had other ideas and matched them all the way, edging them out 21-19 21-18. After this significant career win, there was no celebration, just a calm nod and acknowledgement to their opponents and umpire before walking off court.
-It was a strong performance and I think we played really well in both games. There was a lot of drift in there [the hall] which meant different tactics in each game, but we managed to win. It was frustrating for them [Goh/Tan] that they couldn't beat us where they wanted to, but I think it was really strong from our side, said Nøhr.
-We were leading by a few points in the first game and in the second, we felt things were close so we tried to stay calm and stick to our game plan, Christiansen added.
They will now face their toughest opponents yet, reigning champions Hiroyuki Endo/ Yuta Watanabe. Christiansen will also face Watanabe in the mixed doubles later today.