Long-dominant badminton star Viktor Axelsen now on the comeback trail

Last week, Viktor Axelsen suggested that his badminton career felt like it had come down to a single match.

It was not an Olympic, All England or world championships final, but rather a seemingly routine Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 750 tournament quarter-final.

He said after coming from a set down to triumph in that Denmark Open tie against Kunlavut Vitidsarn: “My career didn’t depend on this match, but it somehow does.

“This has given me the belief I can still play with the best. It’s hard to describe how much I needed this.”

It is a telling revelation from a player whose 1.94m frame has towered over the sport for years, becoming its most decorated singles player in Olympic history, while also having a stranglehold on the world No. 1 perch. His 132-week consecutive spell at the summit is bettered only by Lee Chong Wei.

Yet Axelsen’s teary comments following his first meeting with the Thai former world champion since the Dane

retained his Olympic crown at Paris 2024

shed light on how much things have changed for him since.

The last eight months have been tough for the 31-year-old on and off the court.

He headed into his home tournament having seen his comeback from surgery to repair a herniated disc end meekly in a convincing opening-round straight-set defeat by Kodai Naraoka in Hong Kong in September.

He had said then: “It was nice to get out there again, but I wish I enjoyed it more... I set very high standards for myself, so performing at what I’d consider a relatively low level is hard to accept.”

His last tournament before that was in March at the All England Open, where his

quest for a third title also ended

in the first round at the hands of unheralded Taiwanese Lin Chun-yi.

But the signs were there before that loss.

In a pre-tournament interview with Olympics.com, Axelsen said of his relationship with his body: “I think it has become worse over the years. My body’s telling me to take it easy and I keep pushing, but that’s a part of an athlete’s life.

“You have to push your boundaries and you have to find the balance for everything. The body is a magnificent machine. So if you handle it well, it can do extraordinary things. But also it’s about finding that balance. And for me as an athlete who always wants to do more, that’s the hardest thing.”

Beyond the lines where he has dominated with racket in hand, things have also been complicated for the two-time world champion.

In August, he announced his separation from wife Natalia Koch Rohde, herself a retired former player who was once ranked as high as 35th in the women’s singles.

He made the announcement on social media, saying: “Life doesn’t always go as planned. Natalia and I have decided to part ways on good terms. Our primary focus will be on our two amazing girls and being the best possible parents for them during this difficult time.”

Rohde’s role had been crucial. She told The Straits Times before the Paris Games: “I know how it is to be a badminton player on tour. My role right now is making sure the kids are happy and everything is good at home, especially when Viktor is travelling.”

With that context, it becomes clearer why a seemingly run-of-the-mill meeting with Kunlavut in the third round of a mid-tier tournament held so much significance for Axelsen, who is now ranked 26th.

As the BWF website dramatically described it: “Axelsen didn’t just beat Vitidsarn. He beat the version of himself that had begun to wonder if the scars would ever fully heal.”

After the primacy he put on that tie, Axelsen cut a more sanguine figure looking ahead to his semi-final against reigning world champion Shi Yuqi, saying: “In my world, I’ve already won. I can play relaxed with my quarter-final result. I had no expectations going this far.”

That did not materialise, however. In his three-set loss to the Chinese, they became embroiled in a spat over the Dane’s serve.

Said Shi: “I felt he spent too much time serving. I think it took too long, so that’s why I complained a bit to the service umpire.”

Axelsen sniped back, saying: “I’m so tired of talking about that serve. I’m not the first to serve like that.”

So much for a relaxed semi-final.

But when you spend a combined 183 weeks as world No. 1, led your nation to its only ever Thomas Cup title and have more Olympic singles medals than any player in history, there is no such thing as “playing relaxed”.

Axelsen’s comeback continued on Oct 22, when he defeated Malaysia’s world No. 20 Leong Jun Hao 21-16, 21-15 in the French Open last 32.

It is clear from the teary reaction to beating Kunlavut and his fiery riposte after losing to Shi in Odense that the fire is back in Axelsen.

He now believes he can still play with the best, but can he be the best again?