Christo Popov is getting closer to his best level. Winner two weeks ago of the Hylo Open (Super 300), the Frenchman produced a remarkable performance Thursday in the round of 16 of the Kumamoto Masters (Super 500) in Japan. The three-time French singles champion (25th in the world) eliminated the Taiwanese Chou Tien Chen, world No. 8, at the end of a match full of twists and turns (10-21, 21-14, 21-18).
After leveling the score by winning the second set, Popov came back from a six-point deficit in the decisive set. Trailing 18-12, he won the last nine points of the game to win against an opponent he had never beaten. In the quarter-finals, he will meet the Dane Viktor Axelsen, double Olympic champion whom he used to manhandle without succeeding in defeating him until then.
