Denmark Open: ‘I Can Still Compete with the Best’
Viktor Axelsen stood at match point in his hometown, the weight of eight months pressing against his chest in the VICTOR Denmark Open 2025 quarterfinal.
· DIANNE PIERRE
When Kunlavut Vitidsarn's shuttle fell wide, the two-time world champion's reaction said everything – raw emotion, relief and something deeper. The rekindling of belief in himself.
"I can't describe how much it means to me," he said, his voice heavy with the weight it carried when the Dane sunk to his knees and cried a few minutes earlier. "My career didn't depend on this match but it somehow does," he added of his emotional moment.
It was the first meeting between the shuttlers since their Paris 2024 Olympic final. For Axelsen, his 13-21 21-13 21-18 victory wasn't just another quarterfinal win.