Toma Junior Popov of France delivered the standout result of the opening round at the French Badminton Open, stunning top seed Thai Kunlavut Vitidsarn 9-21 21-14 21-15 in their fifth career meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When the draw was released, Popov\u2019s immediate reaction was simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAgain,\u201d was Popov\u2019s first thought when he saw the draw. It was not the first time they had met in the opening round that year, but the prospect did not faze him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI thought, \u2018Fine, no problem. I\u2019ll go for it.\u2019 I had the home crowd. It wasn\u2019t an easy draw. I have nothing to lose and it\u2019s at home, so I just have to enjoy it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Frenchman arrived in Paris with an extra source of motivation after an underwhelming performance at last week\u2019s Denmark Open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI wanted my revenge from last week. I didn\u2019t play so well. It was a bit of a below-par performance at the Denmark Open, so I wanted to come back and show my level, especially at home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vitidsarn took control early, capitalising on both the conditions and Popov\u2019s errors to claim the opening game. The home favourite admitted he struggled to cope with the Thai\u2019s pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI had a bit of bad luck. My side was a little slower, so when he pushed the shuttles, they slowed down at the back of the court. He pushed me a lot and I couldn\u2019t make the most of it. I also made a lot of easy mistakes. I gave him a lot of opportunities and confidence in the first game, which opened up the court for him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Backed by a vocal Paris crowd, Popov found a way back into the contest and never looked back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe pushed me a lot and brought me back into the game. When I looked at him, it was thinking, \u2018Good, you\u2019re helping me.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The victory marked the first time Popov had beaten the world No.1 officially since 2021, but he was quick to keep the achievement in perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt gives me a lot of confidence, but it\u2019s only one win. I\u2019ll have to prove myself in the next round and keep doing so. It\u2019s good to win against the world No.1.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vitidsarn was gracious in defeat, praising Popov\u2019s all-round game while admitting fatigue took its toll as the match wore on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe can play any style in the game.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Asian Games champion acknowledged his energy levels dropped significantly during the final two games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m very tired,\u201d he said, describing it as a \u201cvery, very good match\u201d while conceding his performance was \u201cnot good enough to win today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Playing men\u2019s doubles later in the day with younger brother Christo Popov, the pair defeated fight seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy\/Chirag Shetty 21-19 18-21 21-13.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Toma Junior Popov of France delivered the standout result of the opening round at the French Badminton Open,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[75],"class_list":["post-16882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-badminton"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t