Badminton witnessed a family rivalry on court over the weekend as Christo Popov defeated his older brother, Toma Junior Popov, to win the men’s singles title at the YONEX German Open 2026 in Mulheim, Germany.
Top-seed Christo bagged a straight-set victory of 21-16, 21-15 over sixth-seed Toma Junior, effectively securing his first Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour title of the season.
Christo, currently ranked fifth in the world, also won the German Open in 2024 against Denmark’s Rasmus Gemke.
He now has three world tour titles under his name.
This was not the first time the Popovs played against each other for a Super 300 title, having competed in the HYLO Open 2024 final, which Christo won.
Speaking to BWF after the game on March 1, Christo admitted that it was “not a normal match.”
“We know each other 100 percent and you can see we are very silent on court. It’s very different from other matches,” said the younger Popov.
“We also tried to not celebrate too much. We want to win of course but we know it’s our brother losing. So we try a different approach, and we’re trying to give our best. It has been a very good run for both men’s singles and men’s doubles.”
The Popovs — ranked 22 in the men’s doubles — won against Denmark pair Christian Faust Kjaer and Rasmus Kjaer in the round of 32, but lost to China’s third-ranked Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang.
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Young Popov in control
The all-French final opened rather calmly, with Christo making the serve and Toma Junior claiming the first point.
Christo, however, quickly showed his advantage against the lower-ranked Popov (17, currently) and easily made the scoreline 3-1.
The highlight of the first set was when Toma Junior did an impressive around-the-back backhand that saved the ball and triggered a tense rally.
But just when everyone thought he had the point secured, the older Popov failed to replicate the same move for the second time, giving the score away to Christo, 13-8.
The rest of the play showed a seemingly struggling Christo as his hits kept catching on the net, but it did not deter him, and he soon reclaimed control to extend the gap, 19-16.
Toma Junior then made the first challenge of the match, which he lost after the review ruled out and handed the point to Christo, 20-16.
The opener easily went to Christo, 21-16, after Toma Junior caught the net.
Frustrated Toma Junior in tense second set
A tense energy blanketed the court as the second game began, and Christo got the first point.
Unlike the first set, where Christo was in control, it appears Toma Junior finally found his footing as he took advantage of his younger brother’s weakness — sending smash attacks just below Christo’s racket hand on the left.
They reached a tie of 4-4 after Toma Junior caught the net, but the sixth-seed quickly recovered, and it became a narrow battle ever since.
It was 11-8 by the interval, with Christo leading.
The young Popov triggered the second challenge immediately after the interval. The point went to Toma Junior, 11-9, after it was ruled in.
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Another challenge was brought by Toma Junior, this time bagging the point, 10-12.
Toma Junior became evidently frustrated as their gap widened to 14-10 when the ball hit the net.
He swiftly closed that gap until a jaw-dropping 38-shot rally, where Toma Junior displayed just how much he wanted the title with his impressive defense. His efforts were not futile as he scored 14-15.
A 36-shot rally took place soon after, and Christo got the score, 17-14.
Christo did not relent and further extended the gap until he failed to send a smash, making the scoreline 15-19.
Toma Junior tried to fight, but it was too late for him, and Christo eventually took the win, 21-15, after the older Popov’s failed backhand.
The entire match lasted for 47 minutes.
On top of the medal and plaque, Christo goes home with nearly $19,000 in prize money and 7,000 BWF points.
China domination
Chinese players dominated the rest of the finals, bagging four out of the five titles in contention.
Cheng Xing and Zhang Chi won the mixed doubles category, 21-12, 21-17, against Denmark’s Mads Vestergaard and Christine Busch.
Women’s singles world No.37 Han Qian Xi stunned her compatriot, second-ranked and top seed Wang Zhi Yi, 21-19, 22-20.
In the all-Chinese women’s doubles final, the duo of Bao Li Jing and Luo Xu Min achieved a straight-game victory against Li Yi Jing and Wang Yi Duo.
China’s men’s doubles pair Chen Bo Yang and Liu Yi defeated Julien Maio and William Villeger of France, 17-21, 21-15, 21-12.
Next in the BWF World Tour calendar is the YONEX All England Badminton Championships 2026.
It will be held from March 3 to 8 in Birmingham, England.
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