General

Viktor has too much for Khosit, after a long week in Japan (Photo: Badminton Photo)
Overcoming the odds in the Doubles
Date: 9/18/2018 6:39 PM
Published by : Alan Raftery
Today marks the beginning of the China Open, taking place in Changzhou. And the first day did not disappoint in terms of exciting us for the week to come, with some big results already.

Much of these key results occurred in the Men’s Doubles with Denmark’s Kim Astrup and Anders Rasmussen defeating the much-fancied Japanese Hiroyuki Endo and Yuta Watanabe. Despite being unseeded against the 8th seed Danes, Endo with his vast experience and Watanabe with his energetic approach to the game combines into a pair who reached the Semi-finals of the All England, and finals of the Malaysian and Thailand Open since. However, following a disappointing home tournament in Japan last week, things didn’t get much better after a 3 game first round loss, 21-18, 17-21, 21-11.

Similarly, established German pair Mark Lamsfuss and Marvin Seidel faced a challenging opening match against the young and up-and-coming Chinese pair of Ou Xuanyi and Ren Xiangyu. Not only is it always a tough task to beat a Chinese pair on home soil, Ou and Ren have had some very promising results this season. Namely a runner-up finish at the Singapore Open latest and victory in the US Open, where they in fact defeated Lamsfuss and Seidel, 21-17, 21-18, in the first round. So, with all this against the Germans, it makes their result all the better, as they reversed the form on its head and won 21-16, 21-18.

Lamsfuss and Seidel will now face Danes Astrup and Rasmussen in the next round. The head to head is 3-0 in favour of the 8th seeds, however their last meeting went all the way to 3 games this time last year. So, all to play for when deciding who will advance to the quarter-final. 

Order restored in the Singles
Number one seed Viktor Axelsen, who had no answer for Kento Momota in the semi-final of the Japan Open last week, faced a difficult test from day one in China. This was in the form of Thailand’s hot prospect, Khosit Phetpradab, who reached the final in Japan, taking out some big names along the way. However, it seems that the week to remember took its toll on Khosit, and thus succumbed to Axelson’s attacking game, losing 21-12, 21-15. 

Another potential player suffering from a Japan Open hangover was South Korean, Lee Dong Keun, who featured in the semi-finals last week. Jan O Jorgensen, who is still campaigning to re-find his form was his opponent today. The game was very tight and went into a third game. And it was Jorgensen who had more in the tank to make it to 21. The match ended 18-21, 21-17, 21-13. Jorgensen will now play 6th seed Chen Long, who himself is trying to re-find his game, after narrowly surpassing his compatriot Huang Yuxiang in unconvincing fashion. 

For all the results and fixtures, click here.

©badmintoneurope.com. All rights reserved.

Related news
29/03/2024
Europeans ready for quarterfinals in Madrid
European favourites out of the...

27/03/2024
EOC Executive Committee awards 2027 European Games to Istanbul
The European Olympic Committee...

27/03/2024
Madrid Spain Masters day 2: Victories, upsets, and excitement on court.
French siblings sweep to victo...

26/03/2024
A first action-packed day unfolds at the Spain Masters
The Madrid Spain Masters 2024 ...

26/03/2024
Spain Masters begins today with an unexpected withdrawal!
Madrid is buzzing with excitem...

25/03/2024
Lane/ Vendy and Marin, victorious at Swiss Open
The Swiss Open concluded this ...

More news