BWF World Championships 2023: HS Prannoy vs Viktor Axelsen, head-to-head, prediction, where to watch & live streaming details

In his quest for his maiden BWF World Championships medal, India's HS Prannoy faces a formidable foe in top seed and World No. 1 Viktor Axelsen in the quarterfinals on Friday (August 25).

In his last two outings at this prestigious competiton, this is the hurdle where the Keralite has had to bite the dust. While his 2019 conqueror was future world champion Loh Kean Yew, in 2022, Prannoy succumbed to Zhao Junpeng in a tight three-game thriller. This time, the World No. 9 will hope to be third time lucky, but it's a step up in the challenge for him.

Viktor Axelsen is, hands down, the best men's singles shuttler on the planet right now, with two World Championships gold medals. The Dane won a third medal — a bronze — in the 2014 edition.

In the ongoing championships in Copenhagen this week, the defending champion has swatted aside Nhat Nguyen, Christo Popov and tenth seed Chou Tien Chen in straight games to march into the last eight.

Prannoy, meanwhile, won his first couple of rounds against Kalle Koljonen and Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo without conceding a game. The Round of 16 proved to be a tough affair for the ninth seed, though, as he found himself against seventh seed and former world champion Loh Kean Yew, who had snapped his run in 2019.

It turned out to be a titanic tussle, where the Indian held his nerves to eke out a thrilling 21-18, 15-21, 21-19 win.

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BWF World Championships 2023, HS Prannoy vs Viktor Axelsen: Head-to-head and Prediction

Viktor Axelsen has proved to be a thorn in the flesh for HS Prannoy, as evident from his 7-2 lead over the Indian in their head-to-head. Prannoy's last win over Axelsen came at the 2022 BWF World Tour Finals in the group stage.

Axelsen and Prannoy have crossed swords twice this year, with the reigning Olympic champion coming out victorious on both occasions. While their Indonesia Open face-off was a straight-game triumph for Axelsen, Prannoy fought hard during their Japan Open showdown before going down 21-19, 18-21, 8-21.

Given Axelsen's pedigree, experience and confidence, he's the heavy favorite to come through this clash once again. The World No. 1 was sidelined for a few weeks by injury issues earlier this year but has made a roaring comeback since then, winning the Indonesia Open, Japan Open and European Games. At the start of the season, he also won the Malaysia Open title before his hiatus from the tour.

Nevertheless, HS Prannoy can never be counted out. His fearless attitude and all-out attacking approach make him capable of beating anyone on his day. The World No. 9 is also in the midst of his career-best season.

He has the Malaysia Masters title and a runner-up finish at the Australian Open to show for among his biggest highlights of the season. If the India No. 1 indeed cuts down on his errors under pressure, he will stand a chance of causing a huge upset in Copenhagen.

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BWF World Championships 2023, HS Prannoy vs Viktor Axelsen: Date and time

HS Prannoy and Viktor Axelsen will square off in the men's singles quarterfinals at the BWF World Championships 2023 on Friday in the eighth match of the day on Court 1.

Date: August 25, 2023

Round: Quarterfinals

Time: Approx. 6.15 pm local time; 9.45 pm IST

Venue: Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark

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BWF World Championships 2023, HS Prannoy vs Viktor Axelsen: Where to watch & live streaming details

This BWF World Championships 2023 match will be broadcast live in India on the Sports18 1 and Sports18 1 HD channels. It will also be shown live on the Jio Cinema app.

Live streaming will be available on YouTube on BWF.TV too. Live scores can also be followed on the tournament software.