Swiss success: Sankar Muthusamy downs world No. 2 Anders Antonsen

CHENNAI: Sankar Muthusamy recorded the biggest win of his nascent career yet, defeating World No. 2 Anders Antonsen of Denmark 18-21, 21-12, 21-5 in the Swiss Open men’s singles pre-quarterfinals in Basel late on Thursday.
What surprised many was the way in which the Indian dominated the deciding game. Despite losing the opener, the 21-year-old did not give up and pushed the match to the decider. He was helped by a flurry of unforced errors that Antonsen committed — the Dane hitting the shuttle wide and long on multiple occasions. Sankar made the most of the opportunity and succeeded.
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The Chennai lad entered the tournament as a qualifier and registered two wins to enter the main draw.
“It feels good, and I have been doing well in this tournament. The first game (against Antonsen) lasted for close to 30 minutes and I feel that he became tired after that. I was able to score points from long rallies and capitalised on the situation. I was focusing on one point at a time and did not think much about the result,” Sankar, ranked 64th, told TOI from Basel.
“In the deciding game, I was just expecting him to come back at me and was ready to handle the situation. My aim was to move him around the court and make him tired.”
Sankar, who was a former junior World No. 1, lacked consistency in the 2024 season due to various reasons. However, he started the 2025 season on a bright note, reaching the quarterfinals of the Thailand Masters. He was later down with fever and could not give his best in the next few tournaments. However, Sankar recovered well ahead of the Swiss Open.
The youngster, who is known for his defensive play, has improved his attacking skills and stroke-making.
“My strokes have become sharper than usual, and I am able to finish off points from the rear court. My power is gradually increasing, and I am working on it. There is still a long way to go,” he said.
Sankar’s long-time coach Aravindan Samiappan said that the win has come at the right time for his ward.
“The moment has not sunk in properly. Sankar was an underdog and had nothing to lose. Our plan was to stay neck-to-neck on points and towards the end anything could have happened. But none would have expected such a scoreline in the decider. It was a bit shocking but that happens sometimes,” Aravindan said.
The coach feels that opponents can no longer come prepared for Sankar, as he lends unpredictability into his game now.
“Sankar can vary the pace of the match whenever required, and this was not the case one and a half years ago. Players could anticipate what he was going to do, as he played at a single pace. Now, you cannot predict him, and that is the major difference in his gameplay,” pointed out the coach.