Commanding win for Jonatan CHRISTIE

On his World Championships debut, the draw was anything but kind to 23-year-old Matthias KICKLITZ, who faced a fired-up Jonatan CHRISTIE in his fifth appearance at the event. Winner of the All England Open and the Asian Championships last year, the world No.5 arrived in Paris determined to go one step further this time around at the adidas arena. 

The opening rallies showed two players still finding their rhythm, with unforced errors on both sides and neither able to pull away (7/7). More solid in the longer rallies, it was the Indonesian who edged ahead at the mid-game interval of the first game (11/9). 

With nothing to lose, KICKLITZ went all out against last year’s World Tour Finals semi-finalist and stayed level until 13/13. But CHRISTIE’s greater experience ultimately told. Despite committing ten unforced errors in the opener, the No.5 raised the tempo at the right moment to take control and secure the first game (21/15). 

The second game was a different story. CHRISTIE immediately shifted into a higher gear, racing into an 8/2 lead. KICKLITZ, struggling to match the pace, trailed heavily at the interval (3/11). Having given his all in the first game, the German could not recover, falling further behind (5/16). Ruthless to the end, the Indonesian reeled off five straight points to seal his spot in the last 32 in emphatic fashion (21/5).