French badminton player Alex Lanier faces Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien Chen in the quarterfinals of the BWF Super 750 Denmark Open, with bookmaker odds placing the probability of a Lanier victory at 62% against 38% for his opponent. Both athletes enter Friday’s matchup aiming for a spot in the tournament’s final four, with neither player holding an advantage regarding motivation.
Form Guide and Recent BWF Tournaments
Chou Tien Chen arrives in the quarterfinals following a series of demanding matches on the international circuit. The world No. 6 started his Denmark Open campaign by defeating India’s Lakshya Sen 21-18, 13-21, 21-15 before securing a 21-19, 22-20 win over Japan’s Watanabe. Last week at the Super 500 event in Finland, Chou reached the quarterfinals before falling to Watanabe in three sets, following earlier victories over France’s Arnaud Merklé in 3 sets and Japan’s Okimoto in two manches. At the World Championships, the Chinese Taipei player claimed the bronze medal after straight-game wins over the Philippines’ Villaflor (118th-ranked) and Italy’s Toti (84th-ranked), followed by victories over Japan’s Tanaka and Indonesia’s Farhan, two regular clients of the world top 30. Chou was also a quarterfinalist at the Asian Games last September.
Alex Lanier 🇫🇷 did it again 🤯He won his first ever BWF World Tour title after defeating all the top players over the past few days.& today, he beat Chou Tien Chen 🇹🇼Brimming with confidence in his gameplay, a well deserved title for this 19 y/o 👏🏻#JapanOpen2024 pic.twitter.com/kuETnNdkIF
Alex Lanier returns to elite competition in Denmark nearly two months after capturing the gold medal at the World Championships in India. The French world No. 8 opened his tournament run by defeating China’s Hu (32nd-ranked) in straight games before overcoming a first-set deficit against Kidambi Srikanth, managing his emotions and fear of losing to win 11-21, 21-15, 21-15. Earlier in the BWF season, Lanier claimed the title at Singapore in May and reached the quarterfinals in Indonesia in June, navigating tough three-set encounters along the way against Thailand’s Vitidsarn (19-21, 21-16, 21-16) and Canada’s Victor Lai (16-21, 21-13, 21-14). Lanier also created a surprise a few weeks ago by defeating Japan’s Naraoka in the final (21-11, 21-11), giving Lanier the advantage on current form.
Betting Odds and Market Projections
Market analysts price Alex Lanier as the favorite with a 62% win probability, while Chou Tien Chen sits at 38%. Bookmakers list Chou at odds of 2.75 for backers looking at an upset, reflecting the competitive parity between the world No. 6 and the French player in Friday’s singles draw, with the world No. 6 considered capable of defeating any top-10 player.
Quarterfinal Schedule and Next Steps
Friday’s schedule at the Denmark Open features the quarterfinal lineup across all categories, with the winners advancing directly to the weekend semifinals.
Worth a look
