Commentary: Viktor Axelsen and Loh Kean Yew’s bromance is reshaping badminton

SAN FRANCISCO: With the retirement of China’s Lin Dan and Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei, curtains fell on badminton’s famous “Lin-Lee rivalry”, which defined the sport for well over a decade since the mid-2000s and took it to new heights.

It was hard to imagine there could be another pair of opponents who would capture the imagination of fans with as much fervour - until Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen and Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew came along.

In August, Axelsen won the World Championships, while defending champion Loh crashed out in the quarterfinals. Loh lost 12-21, 21-17, 8-21 to eventual runner-up Kunlavut Vitidsarn.

In the 2021 edition, 25-year-old Loh upset Axelsen in three games in the first round enroute to capturing the historic crown for Singapore.

28-year-old Viktor Axelsen has always stood head and shoulders above his peers, since he caught the badminton world’s attention for becoming the first European to become the World Junior Champion in 2010 at just 16 years old.

Since then, he has cemented his top spot becoming the world champion and world number 1 in 2017. He made a roaring comeback after injuries to bag the 2020 Olympic title in Tokyo, without dropping a game. He won the world title last week in an identical dominant fashion.

Japan’s 2018 and 2019 World Champion Kento Momota had been the closest to establishing a long-term formidable rivalry with Axelsen. But the 27-year-old is still struggling to regain top form since early-2021.

In their most recent encounter at the Petronas Malaysia Open’s final in July, Axelsen defeated Momota 21-4 21-7 in just 34 minutes. At the World Championships on his home turf, Momota fell to the unseeded Prannoy H S in the round of 32.

Enter 25-year-old Loh Kean Yew. After Loh won the