Denmark Open: Gritty Fightback by Vittinghus
Hans-Kristian Solberg Vittinghus made his first Denmark Open quarterfinal in a long career after a rollercoaster second round at the DANISA Denmark Open 2020 in which he demonstrated great reserves of mental strength.
· DEV SUKUMAR
His opponent Lakshya Sen’s strong show in the opening game gave little hint of what was to follow, for his game unravelled in the second with a succession of errors, allowing Vittinghus to go 18-4 at one point.
Vittinghus was cramping in his right leg but hid his condition well, and Sen aided his cause with a terrible second game in which he totally lost control. The Indian gave up the game too early, and admitted later that after his errors in the beginning, he had decided to play for the third game. It was a tougher contest in the third, with Vittinghus displaying great heart in defending stoutly and taking the opportunities he created.
“I was basically in no condition to play. For the last one and a half months, I’ve trained for one week, and I feel terrible right now, but Lakshya gave away the second game. He should never have done that; had he played full out in the second game I would’ve been carried out. My right leg is gone. I started cramping at 1-0 in the second game and was struggling from then on but I felt Lakshya was not confident on court. To prolong the adventure for one more day is so nice. For the first time in my career I’m in the quarterfinals here. I’ve never performed well here.”