For the third consecutive time, Denmark held off France’s challenge in the final of the European Mixed Team Championships to win their 20th title overall.
The buzz was around France in the runup to this year’s edition, given the form of their players. However, Denmark aced the test, blanking France 3-0 in the final yesterday.
It was Jesper Toft/Amalie Magelund who prevented France from gaining any momentum, as the world No.13 mixed doubles duo overcame world No.8 Thom Gicquel/Delphine Delrue in a close encounter, 21-11 18-21 21-15.
Alex Lanier had beaten Anders Antonsen in their last two matches, and France would have harboured hopes of levelling the score, but in another tight match, Antonsen edged ahead 21-19 21-18.
That left Léonice Huet with the task of rescuing France in women’s singles, but her opponent Line Christophersen shut out her challenge in just 37 minutes, 21-16 21-14 to ensure that the title stayed with the defending champions.
Earlier, the group stages saw Denmark and England make the semifinals from Group 1, ahead of Spain and hosts Azerbaijan, while France and Germany entered the semifinals from Group 2 ahead of Czechia and Netherlands.
The notable upset in the group matches was that of Line Kjaersfeldt, who was beaten in a thriller by Azerbaijan’s Keisha Fatimah Azzahra 17-21 21-11 23-21. Nevertheless, Denmark proceeded to beat Azerbaijan 4-1 and did not drop a match in the semifinals or final.
Azerbaijan, playing on home turf in Baku, did give a good account of themselves, going down 2-3 to England and Spain.
In Group 2, France cruised through their ties, dropping only one match, against Czechia: Anna Tatranova’s 26-24 21-13 loss to 19-year-old Petra Maixnerova.
“I feel amazing because last time I lost against her in three games, and I’m so happy that I didn’t today,” said the excited Maixnerova. “Being among the best players in Europe is amazing.”
Both Denmark and France were unstoppable in the semifinals, with Denmark whitewashing Germany 3-0, and France similarly dominant over England.