Anders Antonsen was facing a crucial day at the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2024, knowing he needed a strong performance against Chou Tien Chen to secure his semifinal spot. However, before Antonsen could step onto the court for his final group match, an unexpected incident in the other Group A match guaranteed his advancement.
The focus was on the first Group A clash, between Lee Zii Jia and Li Shi Feng. The Malaysian player was leading with a score of 22-20 in the first game and 15-11 in the second. Just as victory seemed very likely for Lee, a sudden twist of fate occurred — Lee twisted his ankle and had to withdraw from the match, abruptly ending the clash.
This turn of events ensured Antonsen's advancement to the semifinals, even before his match took place. Although Antonsen won the first game, Chou Tien Chen rallied to win the next two, securing the match win, 16-21, 21-18, 21-15. Despite this, Antonsen still finished top of Group A due to his earlier results and the win in the first game of this duel.
Reflecting on his performance, Antonsen admitted to TV2 SPORT that he struggled with consistency during the long duels of the match.
The only other Europeans in the event, Kim Astrup/ Anders Skaarup Rasmussen, who had already secured the top spot in their group, faced a challenging match against Chinese Taipei’s Lee Jhe-Huei/ Yang Po-Hsuan. The Danes fell in straight games, 10-21, 19-21, yet their wins in the previous days had already secured their place in the semifinals.
Who will be their semifinal opponents?
With the group matches concluded, it was time to wait for the semifinal matchups. The draw, held shortly after the day's play, determined who the qualified would face next.
Kim Astrup/ Anders Skaarup Rasmussen are set against Indonesia’s Sabar Karyaman Gutama/ Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani, a duo they defeated earlier this year in straight games. The question now is, can the Danes keep the momentum and repeat that performance on this stage?
For Anders Antonsen, the challenge intensifies as he faces Jonatan Christie. Although the Indonesian player holds a 6-4 lead in their head-to-head, Antonsen claimed victory in their last encounter at the China Masters final last month. Will he repeat the feat?