Christo Popov confirms his excellent momentum at the World Tour Finals. The day after his prestigious success against the Dane Anders Antonsen, the Frenchman signed a second consecutive victory in singles on Thursday, dominating the Thai Kunlavut Vitidsarn, 2023 world champion and world No. 2, in three sets (21-11, 18-21, 21-10). A major performance which places the Habs in a very good position before the last day of the group stage. In mixed doubles, Delphine Delrue and Thom Gicquel also struck hard by winning against the Thais Puavaranukroh-Paewsampran, completely restarting the race for the semi-finals.
Popov, solid and ambitious
Two matches, two victories in three sets: Christo Popov spares no effort in Hangzhou, but his efficiency is formidable. Facing Kunlavut Vitidsarn, the Frenchman quickly dispelled doubts about his physical condition, the day after his worrying slip during the previous match. Mobile, explosive and impressively solid in defense, the world No. 8 stifled the Thai in the first round, won by a wide margin (21-11).
Vitidsarn tried to react in the second set, taking advantage of a slight drop in intensity from the Frenchman to equalize (18-21). But Popov had too many arguments to make. In the decisive round, his fast and aggressive game took its toll, leaving his opponent with little chance (21-10). A logical victory, almost expected as the Frenchman seems to have taken the psychological advantage over the Thai, beaten for the fourth consecutive time.
Thanks to this new success, Popov finds himself ideally placed in group A. Before his last group match, Friday, against the Indonesian Jonatan Christie (world No. 5), he can not only aim for a historic qualification for the semi-finals – a first for a Frenchman in singles – but also first place in the group.
At the end of the meeting, the Frenchman was confident: “Tactically, it was not bad, very different from yesterday, and physically I feel good. I’m happy to have won this meeting, I’m on the right track to qualify. »
Delrue and Gicquel revive the suspense
The day also smiled on the French camp in mixed doubles. Narrowly beaten on Wednesday by the Chinese world number 1, Delphine Delrue and Thom Gicquel were already playing big against the Thai Puavaranukroh-Paewsampran, seeded n°3. With their backs against the wall after the loss of the first set (14-21), the bronze medalists of the last Worlds were able to react with authority.
#BWFWorldTourFinals | 🔥𝐋𝐞𝐬
➡️ Intractable, @Popov_Christo makes Kunlavut VITIDSARN 🇹🇭 (n°2), 21/11 18/21 21/10. The Frenchman is getting closer to qualifying for the semi-finals 👀
➡️ Incredibles Thom Gicquel/@dedeyyyyy ! THE… pic.twitter.com/Etc6Omrha8
— FFBaD (@FFBaD) December 18, 2025
Technically fairer and much more incisive, the French dominated the second set (21-14) before making the difference in a tense third set (21-18). Thom Gicquel’s sharp attacks, combined with Delphine Delrue’s excellent anticipation at the net, ended up turning the game around.
This success puts the Blues completely back in the race for qualification. On Friday, they will play their future against the Japanese Midorikawa/Saito in the last group match. A victory could send them to the semi-finals of the World Tour Finals for the second time in their career, after the 2020 edition.
Between the rise of Christo Popov and the awakening of mixed doubles, French badminton is having a promising week in Hangzhou. The last day of groups promises to be decisive and potentially historic.
Related reading
