Kuala Lumpur: In an unexpected turn of events, two-time Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen made an early exit from the Malaysia Open on Tuesday. The Danish badminton star struggled to find his rhythm, losing to Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk Yiu in straight sets, 17-21, 13-21, in a match that lasted just 38 minutes at the Axiata Arena.
Highlights of Viktor Axelsen vs. Lee Cheuk Yiu in 2025 Malaysia Open first round:
Axelsen, ranked fourth in the world, admitted after the match that he is still recovering from a left foot injury.
“My physical condition isn’t where it needs to be right now, and that’s something I must work on,” he said.
“I started training again after a break, but I ended up injuring myself during practice. At this point, there’s not much more to say,” added Axelsen, who had previously claimed back-to-back Malaysia Open titles in 2022 and 2023.
The two-time Olympic champion had also withdrawn from the BWF World Tour Finals in Hangzhou last month to focus on his recovery.
Meanwhile, Denmark’s world number one men’s doubles pair, Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen, were also eliminated in the tournament’s first round. In a tightly contested match, Taiwan’s Wang Chi Lin and Chiu Hsiang Chieh edged out the Danes with scores of 21-16, 18-21, and 22-20 in just over an hour.
Astrup and Rasmussen, who recently won the BWF World Tour Finals in Hangzhou by defeating Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin Rumsani, couldn’t maintain their winning momentum in Kuala Lumpur.
