With Axelsen on team, Denmark hope to win medal in Thomas Cup

With Axelsen on team, Denmark hope to win medal in Thomas Cup

COPENHAGEN: The Danish Badminton Association will use its home advantage to field two large teams to achieve one medal at the forthcoming Thomas Cup and Uber Cup to be held from October 9-17 in the second largest Danish city of Aarhus.

Olympic gold winner Viktor Axelsen is one of the 12 players in the Danish national team for the Thomas Cup, joined by Anders Antonsen and the 2018 Spain Masters winner Rasmus Gemke.

"Our ambition is to win a medal with the Thomas Cup team, knowing there are strong nations we face. I think we have selected a team that has the experience, the level, and the hunger to be able to make a difference," said national head coach Kenneth Jonassen in the press release on Thursday.

The Danish men's team will challenge the championship in a pool with France, Germany, and South Korea, harboring hopes of repeating the nation's best performance from 2016 when the Scandinavians won a gold medal, reports Xinhua.

In contrast, the women's selection is based on "a goal of progressing further" than the regular quarter-final berth the team has been accustomed to in recent Uber Cup matches.

Julie Dawall and Alexandra Boj are two of five female debutantes prepared to "shake things up" in the 11 women's teams.

"If we put pressure on the opponent, the home-court advantage can make a decisive difference and give us the advantage," said Jonassen.

The Danish women's team, whose best performance in the Uber Cup was a silver medal 21 years ago, is placed in a tough group with group favourites China, Malaysia, and Canada. IANS

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