My idol: Denmark’s Anders Antonsen taking a photo of Lin Dan after winning his match against Hu Zhean in the King’s Cup final.
PETALING JAYA: Thanks Lin Dan for the great service.
Denmark’s men’s singles shuttler Anders Antonsen expressed his gratitude to Chinese great Lin Dan after smashing his way to the King’s Cup title in Shenzhen yesterday.
Lin Dan organised the lucrative invitational tournament for the first time and Antonsen emerged champion after a hard-fought 18-21, 21-11, 21-18 victory over homester and world junior champion Hu Zhean.
The Dane took home a whopping 1.1 million yuan (RM673,000) and thanked Lin Dan for his initiative and the fans for their support,
“Big thanks to Lin Dan and the organisers for the invitation. You guys raised the bar in terms of taking care of the players and providing a better live experience for the fans. Well done,” said Antonsen via social media.
“To the spectators here in the beautiful city of Shenzhen. Thanks for the making this week an amazing one. You guys were on fire and I hope you enjoyed the show.”
Antonsen also praised the 18-year-old Hu Zhean for his battling performance and believes that the youngster has a bright future.
“Last match of 2024 ended up being one of the more memorable ones of the year,” said Antonsen.
“Got to play against the reigning world junior champion and what a fantastic performance he delivered. Will definitely see more of Zhean in the future.”
The victory was the icing on the cake for Antonsen after a splendid year. The 27-year-old captured the Malaysian Open, Indonesian Masters, Denmark Open, China Masters and claimed gold in the European Championships.
Antonsen also finished runner-up in the Indonesian Open and World Tour Finals and ended the year as the world No. 2 behind only China’s Shi Yuqi.
The Dane will now start as one of the favourites in the Malaysian Open from Jan 7-12 in Bukit Jalil.
