Anders Antonsen: the deceptive Dane ready to step out of Viktor Axelsen’s shadow

Anders Antonsen won the Arctic Open 2026 and is World No. 2. His rise from Aarhus, his deceptive game and the race to succeed Viktor Axelsen.

Updated : Oct 14, 2026 10:21 IST - 3 MINS READ

Anders Antonsen’s major professional breakthrough came in 2019, when he beat World No. 1 Kento Momota in the final of the Indonesian Masters. | Photo Credit: AFP

When Anders Antonsen won the Arctic Open 2026, he did so after an 87-minute battle against Japan’s Yushi Tanaka. He fought his way through to an extra-points decider, looking every bit younger than his 29 years.

With 12 BWF World Tour titles to his name, the Danish shuttler is a fixture on the circuit. But Antonsen’s success is no overnight story.

He started playing at six at Aarhus Badminton Club in Denmark. Within a decade, he had become the European Junior champion and claimed the Dutch, Irish and Belgian international titles. He was also named the 2015 European Young Player of the Year.

His major professional breakthrough came in 2019, when he beat World No. 1 Kento Momota in the final of the Indonesian Masters to claim his first BWF World Tour title.

Gold at the European Games in Minsk followed, before he reached the World Championships final. Beyond his World Tour wins, Antonsen has won the World Tour Finals, four World Championships medals and two European titles, often without a permanent national head coach in his corner.

He trains on his own terms, speaks his mind and combines consistency and entertainment like few others in men’s singles.

A wizard of deception

Antonsen is known for his ability to manipulate an opponent’s movement, exploit their shot preferences and anticipate their recovery. He studies an opponent’s style before forcing errors through changes of pace and placement.

Standing 1.83 metres tall, he has the reach to intercept shots early and recover towards the centre of the court. He relies on spinning net replies, sharp net kills and tight tumbling shots, avoiding flat exchanges that allow opponents to attack freely.

Clears and smashes punish opponents caught out of position, while varied attacking options frustrate aggressive players and disrupt their rhythm.

Whether playing a cross-court slice or a straight drop, Antonsen disguises his intentions and creates wider angles, forcing opponents to cover more ground.

An understudy or a successor?

Currently ranked No. 2, Antonsen is the natural candidate to succeed compatriot Viktor Axelsen, who dominated men’s singles for more than three years.

Axelsen, a two-time Olympic gold medallist who won all four BWF Super 1000 events during his career, announced his retirement in April 2026.

“We both have the same goals so sometimes we are rivals,” Antonsen told Olympic Channel in an interview in 2020.

“I see Viktor as a really important piece in my development, actually, because we practise together almost every day. He’s a phenomenal badminton player and he has some great, great skills.”

With Axelsen retired and former World No. 1 Momota no longer at his peak, the race for the top spot appears more open. Whether the King of the Arctic can step out of Axelsen’s shadow and claim the world No. 1 ranking remains to be seen. His next challenge comes on home soil at the Denmark Open.