Last week’s Super 1000 China Open didn’t result in European success, but the Sands China Ltd. Macau Open Badminton 2024 offers a glimmer of promise, despite limited European participation.
Starting tomorrow, the qualifying rounds of the Macau Open 2024 will begin! As the final Asian tournament of this leg of the BWF World Tour, the European participants have a slim but realistic chance of achieving the necessary results, given the Super 300 level of competition.
European Participants:
Paradoxically, due to the Super 300 level of the tournament and its location in Macau, European participation is limited. However, since the competition level is not the highest, the chances of success for those who do participate are all the more intriguing and promising.
Possible Paths:
In women’s doubles, Polina Buhrova and Yevheniia Kantemyr's most impressive results on the World Tour this season have been quarterfinal finishes at the US Open and the Australian Open. They are seeded seventh in this tournament, and if everything goes according to plan, they should reach the quarterfinals before meeting another seeded pair. Reaching the final four would represent a significant step forward for the duo.
(Photo: BWF / Badmintonphoto)
In men’s doubles, Ben Lane and Sean Vendy, seeded number one, will aim to replicate their Super 300 success from the Swiss Open 2024, where they won gold. Securing a second Super 300 gold in Macau would be a significant step for the pair in cementing their place and showcasing their progress over the last few years.
Difficult Paths:
In men’s singles, we have Italy’s Giovanni Toti and Israel’s Daniil Dubovenko representing Europe. Both players are likely to face seeded opponents in the early rounds.
(Photo: BWF / Badmintonphoto)
For Toti, after a first-round match against a qualifier, he would meet Chi Yu Jen, the Syed Modi India International 2023 champion and runner-up at the YONEX Taipei Open 2024.
For Dubovenko, he faces India’s 2021 World Championships runner-up, Kidambi Srikanth, who is seeded sixth in the tournament.
In mixed doubles, Ukranian pair Oleksii Titov and Yevheniia Kantemyr will likely face the second-seeded pair from Singapore, Hee Yong Kai Terry and Tan Wei Han Jessica, in the round of 16. The pair dominated several Super 100 BWF World Tour events and the Irish Open in 2023 and will be a tough opponent for the Ukranians.
For these Europeans, simply getting past these seeded opponents and securing a victory would represent a major step forward and would be worth celebrating, however this Asian leg has already brought
surprises none would have though imaginable.
Badminton Europe looks forward to covering the results of the Macau Open 2024 and hopes for more exciting surprises from the European players!
All matches can be streamed live on
BWF TV.
All match results are available
here: