PETALING JAYA: French brothers Toma and Christo Popov made their presence felt in the All-England by claiming big upset wins in the men’s singles first round.
World No. 27 Toma stole the show by stunning China’s defending champion and Hangzhou Asian Games gold medallist Li Shifeng 21-17, 21-13 at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham on Tuesday.
Surprisingly, it was the 25-year-old’s third consecutive victory over the Chinese world No. 4 after also triumphing over the latter in the 2022 Hylo Open and 2023 Denmark Open.
Toma was delighted to come away with his latest win after going through a tough few weeks due to injuries.
“Very happy because I was struggling these last few weeks with some injuries, some back problems and other physical issues,” said Toma in a post match interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
“So I’m happy to be back, really happy that it’s happening at the All England.
“It’s one of my favourite tournaments and it’s the first time I’m going into the second round in men’s singles. It’s a great achievement for the moment.”
Meanwhile, younger brother Christo, who captured his first World Tour title in the German Open earlier in the month, continued his good form by toppling Hong Kong’s Indian Open runner-up Lee Cheuk Yiu 22-20, 17-21, 21-16 in an exhausting match lasting 72 minutes.
Making their mark: French brothers Christo and Toma Popov (right).
The 22-year-old was relieved to survive the tough test.
“I have mixed feelings, it was very tough mentally,” Christo, who was making his debut in the prestigious tournament in the singles, told BWF.
“It wasn’t physical, it was mostly skills and some tactical preparation. The hall was great to play in today (Tuesday), there was no draught.
“It was really tough in the head, and when I won it was just relief, no celebration.
“I’m pretty happy because it was my first All-England in singles. Cheuk Yiu has done well lately and he’s a great player.”
Christo will play Taiwan’s Su Li-yang next for a place in the last eight while Toma will take on Japan’s Koki Watanabe.
Both the brothers, though, could not replicate their fine form in the doubles together when they went down 16-21, 13-21 to Denmark’s 2023 World Championships silver medallists Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen.
