Anders Antonsen played impressively at times against world champion Alex Lanier in the final of the Denmark Open, but the majority of the errors came from the Dane, allowing Lanier to claim the victory.
After 1 hour and 16 minutes, Antonsen lost 15-21, 21-13, 13-21. Had Antonsen won the final, he overtaken the position as World No.1 for the first time in his career.
Both players entered the match full of confidence. 21-year-old Lanier won the World Championship at the end of August and had been on a break since, while 29-year-old Antonsen arrived fresh off a tournament victory at the Arctic Open in Finland.
Antonsen started on the more difficult side, with the wind at his back. This led to several errors at the baseline early on, and Lanier took a 9-5 lead.
Both players are known for their tactical acumen. Neither possesses an exceptionally powerful smash, resulting in a first set characterized by a number of slower-paced rallies.
The Dane fought his way back to 10-10, and again from 10-14 to 13-14, but a string of errors saw him fall behind 14-20. Lanier secured the set on his second set point.
Antonsen carried his tactic—keeping the world champion at the baseline as much as possible—into the second set, while also maintaining the solid defensive play he had established.
Outstanding play—both offensively and defensively—put Antonsen ahead 17–8, and he closed out the set shortly thereafter.
The wind, however, once again became an opponent that Antonsen struggled to manage in the final set.
Errors crept back in, and frustration began to mount as they approached the change of ends, with the score at 11–5 in the Frenchman’s favor.
By the time Antonsen returned to the favorable side of the court, the tension had become too high. Lanier played intelligently, while Antonsen forced his shots in an attempt to close the point gap quickly.
The world champion punished this effectively, and Antonsen never managed to get back into the set.