SCOTTISH OPEN 2016 – Antonsen’s 1st is one of 3 for Denmark

It was a day for Danes and Malaysians as between them the two countries took swept the five titles in Glasgow, the venue for the next edition of the World Championships.

By Michael Burke, Badzine Correspondent.  Photos: Badmintonphoto (archives)

In a tournament unusually light on higher ranked players, the Scottish Open provided a good opportunity for the younger players. In no case was that more true than in the men’s singles final, where 19-year-old Anders Antonsen (pictured above) beat Soong Joo Ven.  A close first game saw the Dane edge it out in extra points, but an easier second saw Antonsen take the match in straight games.

For Malaysia’s Soong Joo Ven (pictured right), it was already a milestone as the 2012 Asian Junior Championship runner-up finally reached his first Grand Prix final.  However, Antonsen’s achievement makes him only the third teenager since Lin Dan to take a Grand Prix men’s singles title.

“It was a tough match, it was a tough week,” said Antonsen after the final.  “I’ve played a lot of really, really exhausting matches but to stand here as the winner, it’s amazing.  It’s my first Grand Prix win so I’m really happy.

Asked by on-court emcee and former World Champion Gail Emms whether he would be Denmark’s successor to past singles champions, Antonsen replied: “I’m the next one.  All my compatriots home in Denmark, they can watch out!”

(Click here to watch the post-match interview from the Badminton Denmark Facebook page)

Antonsen’s compatriot Mette Poulson took the harder route, letting slip a 5-point lead in the second game to force the deciding rubber, but never went behind in the third as she took the match from Sabrina Jaquet of Switzerland.

Home hopes on Sunday lay solely with the pairing of Adam Hall and English partner Peter Mills, the latter finishing the game as beaten finalist in consecutive years.

Last year it was Germans who stood in the way of Peter Mills, but this year he and partner Hall were beaten by Mathias Christiansen and David Daugaard (pictured).  The Danes thus did one better than their runner-up finish at the Dutch Open and rounded out a strong day for Denmark.

An all-Malaysian women’s doubles final proved to be the shortest match of the day.  Closely matched by rankings given the status of both as new pairings, the match was not so close as Lim and Yap emerged comfortable victors over Anscelly and Teo.

First seeds Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Sikki Reddy were dealt a shock in the mixed final, losing out to qualifiers Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Jemie Lai (pictured right).  After taking the first game easily and leading for much of the remaining two, the Indian pair struggled to close out the match.

In the final game, with a 16-12 lead, the Malaysians took 9 straight points to race to the title.  The Indians were aiming to stand alone as the only 3-time winners in Grand Prix events this year but they have to settle for their consecutive successes in Brazil and Russia earlier in the autumn.

Final results
WD:  Lim Yin Loo / Yap Cheng Wen (MAS) beat Amelia Alicia Anscelly / Teoh Mei Xing (MAS)     21-17, 21-13
MS:  Anders Antonsen (DEN) [2] beat Soong Joo Ven (MAS) [15]  22-20, 21-14
XD:  Goh Soon Huat / Shevon Jemie Lai (MAS) beat Pranaav Jerry Chopra / Sikki Reddy (IND) [1]  13-21, 21-18, 21-16
WS:  Mette Poulsen (DEN) [3] beat Sabrina Jaquet (SUI) [6]  21-18, 17-21, 21-14
MD:  Mathias Christiansen / David Daugaard (DEN) [1] beat Adam Hall (SCO) / Peter Mills (ENG)  15-21, 21-19, 21-15

The full results for the day can be found here