Just days ago, Anders Antonsen thought he was out of the tournament. As he said on Wednesday: “I was out of this tournament, but now I am totally back again.” He was right.

Yesterday, the Dane survived a nail-biting three-game battle against Toma Junior Popov, and today he followed up with another big performance, this time in the quarterfinal against Chou Tien Chen.

The two had faced each other 13 times before, with Chou holding the head-to-head advantage at 8–5. The 35-year-old from Chinese Taipei has been a fixture on the world stage for years, but despite his consistently high level, he has never reached a World Championships final. His best result so far was a bronze medal in Tokyo 2022.

Antonsen, meanwhile, reached the final once before, in 2019, where he lost to Kento Momota. In today’s clash, the first game was tightly contested until 15–15, when Antonsen pulled away to take it 21–17. It was a grueling opener full of long, draining rallies, but the Dane felt he had the physical edge: “Definitely (I felt like I had the physical upper hand). It was very physical in the first game, and I feel like that benefited me.”

Despite enduring several marathon matches already this week, Antonsen insists he still has plenty left in the tank ahead of his semifinal against defending champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn tomorrow. “I have a lot (of energy) left in the body, and even more willpower in the head.”