Viktor Axelsen (PTI Photo)

NEW DELHI: The All England Open witnessed a major upset on Wednesday when former badminton world number one Viktor Axelsen suffered a surprising first-round exit at the hands of Taiwan’s Lin Chun-yi. Despite a closely contested opening game, Axelsen dominated the second game, raising expectations of a potential comeback.
However, the Dane failed to maintain his form in the decider, as Lin Chun-yi went on a six-point streak, ultimately securing a 21-19, 13-21, 21-11 victory.
Axelsen, currently ranked fourth in the world, acknowledged the unpredictability of the sport, stating, “If I don’t play my best, everyone can win against me.”
He credited his opponent’s exceptional performance while expressing disappointment with his own display.
“Today’s opponent played a fantastic game, it was disappointing but that is how it is. I just tried to survive in the match. There is always a lot of pressure when I am here at the All England and every single day, and I got tense when my body was feeling bad and it affected my entire game,” he added.
In another men’s singles match, Yushi Tanaka emerged victorious against eighth-seeded compatriot Kodai Naraoka in an all-Japanese encounter.
The women’s singles event saw top-seeded South Korean An Se-young, the 2023 winner, progress smoothly with a 21-16, 21-14 victory over China’s Gao Fangjie.
Former champion Chen Yufei also advanced to the next round, while her Chinese compatriot and second seed, Wang Zhiyi, eliminated two-time winner Nozomi Okuhara.