Mathias Christiansen/Alexandra BØje produced one of the shocks of the day by toppling world No.1s Jiang Zhen Bang/Wei Ya Xin 13-21 21-12 29-27 in a pulsating encounter that had the crowd on their feet at YONEX French Open 2025.

The Danish duo had pushed the Chinese close in recent weeks but this time they found a way in a decider that ebbed and flowed right to the final point.

Boje described it “a crazy match” after they had also taken Jiang and Wei to three games the previous week at the Denmark Open.

Christiansen pointed to potential fatigue in the Chinese camp after consecutive finals at the Arctic and Denmark Opens but was quick to credit their own execution. His flick serve caused Wei particular problems with the heavier shuttles.

“Every pair that meet them want to use the flick serve,” he said. “Today it was easier and we managed that quite well.”

Their win sets up a quarterfinal clash with Thom Gicquel/Delphine Delrue, who survived their own scare against Rohan Kapoor/Gadde Ruthvika Shivani. The French pair looked in serious trouble after a disjointed opening game but roared back to win 12-21 21-8 21-17 and book their second last eight appearance at their home tournament.

Delrue admitted afterwards composure had been in short supply during a nervy morning.

“It was hard to stay calm because it wasn’t a really good day on court,” she said. “We fought a lot to keep going and we played well in the second game and the last five points of the decider. That was enough.”

The crowd played their part too.

“When we were losing, they were cheering for us, so it helped,” said Rennes native Gicquel. “They celebrated with us because the opponents were good and they helped us win a close match.”

Gicquel is looking forward to the challenge of facing the Danes.

“It’s going to be a great match,” he said. “Two good pairs so let’s see how we are going to play.”

→ Results (Day 3)

→ Order of play (Quarterfinals)

WHAT OTHERS SAID

“I don’t think he knew how to play this version of me and I don’t know if this kind of level is the reason why I have three World Junior Championships gold medals but I guess I got lucky today.” – Kunlavut Vitidsarn after defeating Kodai Naraoka 21-7 21-6 in 38 minutes

“I was confident because I’ve defeated Lee before and the fact I was playing at home helped my motivation with no extra pressure. I could have played my brother in the Round of 16 but it’s easier to play someone else.” – Christo Popov

“I wanted to show I can fight over consecutive weeks. He’s an amazing player and we’ve played each other many times. To beat him twice in a row means a lot. I have great respect for him.” – All praise for Chou Tien Chen from Viktor Axelsen after his 21-11 23-21 win