Showtime: Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen is ready to showcase his credentials as the world No. 1 when the Malaysian Open starts tomorrow. — AFP
KUALA LUMPUR: World No. 1 Viktor Axelsen may have arrived slightly later for the Malaysian Open but the Dane has promised nothing but a quality show to entertain his fans in Kuala Lumpur and get the Badminton World Tour (BWF) tour’s curtain raiser to a blistering start.
And that only spells danger for his rivals who are still struggling to end Axelsen’s magical run on the badminton circuit.
Axelsen, who often arrives early for tournaments to get a headstart, only touched down in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday and only attended his first training session at the Axiata Arena yesterday.
The reason for the late arrival, Axelsen said, was spending quality time with his wife Natalia Koch Rohde and his daughters Vega, two, and Aya, who is just three months old, during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
“I want to spend as much time with my family as possible while still preparing the best way possible,” said Axelsen.
“This time, I was having some good time with my wife and daughters during Christmas and New Year. Nothing behind that.
“Settling in with the little one who is just three months old and just spending time with them is precious.”
Axelsen brought his wife Natalie and Vega along during the tournament in June last year after his Indonesia Open and Masters triumphs but he has decided to travel alone this time.
Axelsen arrived more than a week earlier in Kuala Lumpur in his last trip and had trained at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara and went on to win a third consecutive title by clinching the Malaysian Open after beating Japanese rival Kento Momota.
Momota has withdrawn from the tournament due to injury and the Dane wished his rival well.
“I’m not sure about his condition and I hope he will recover really fast and the whole badminton world is hoping to see him back,” said Axelsen.
Axelsen will open his campaign against Rasmus Gemke of Denmark in the first round and was supposed to meet Momota in an expected second-round clash.
“My focus is to play my best game no matter if it’s super 300, super 500 or super 1000. I want to give full focus to my first match and play some good badminton in Malaysia,” said Axelsen.
Axelsen will be the player to beat again this week as he comes in with fiery form after having won eight titles, including the world crown in Tokyo and the World Tour Finals in Bangkok last year.
