World No. 1 An Se Young is on the brink of securing consecutive Singapore Badminton Open titles after triumphing in a thrilling match against Indonesia’s Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, winning 21-14, 23-21.
An dominated the first game, clinching it in just 17 minutes. However, Tunjung surged back in the second game, delivering powerful smashes and forcing An to match her speed. An displayed remarkable defence, saving a crucial game point at 19-20. In a series of intense rallies, An ultimately held her nerve to seal the victory.
Reflecting on the game, the Olympic champion commented: “It was very difficult to follow her speed. In the first game, I was able to play my own game. However, in the second game, I was focusing too much on just following and adapting to her playing style.”
In the other semifinal, world No. 2 Chen Yu Fei overpowered Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwong in a dominant 46-minute match, winning 21-12, 21-17.
The upcoming final between An and Chen will be a repeat of the Asian Games final, where An made history as the first Korean women’s singles player to win the Asian Games gold in 29 years.
Although An trails in their head-to-head record (7-11), she is optimistic about defending her title. “I still have vivid memories of my wins over her. This match is a great opportunity to test myself before the Olympics,” An remarked.
Men’s Singles
World No. 2 Shi Yu Qi advanced to the men’s singles final after a tough battle against Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien Chen, winning 28-26, 21-9.
Chou led most of the first game, but Shi mounted a fierce comeback, saving seven game points to win 28-26. Shi then dominated the second game, impressively scoring 11 consecutive points to lead 15-4 before shortly rounding off the game 21-9.
Shi will face world No. 6 Li Shi Feng in an all-Chinese final after Viktor Axelsen withdrew from their semifinal match due to an ankle injury.
Shi shared, “We are quite familiar with each other. During the last major game we met, I lost to him in two games. I just hope that I can make some changes.”
He added: “To be honest, for the two of us to have fought through the upper and lower half of the draw to meet in the finals, it has been really tough, and I am delighted. I can see that our China men’s team has made great improvements. I hope I can perform well tomorrow.”
Li has defeated Shi in straight games in their last two meetings.
Mixed Doubles
Chinese Taipei’s Yang Po-Hsuan and Hu Ling Fang continued their remarkable run at the KFF Singapore Badminton Open, reaching their first-ever final after defeating Denmark’s Mads Vestergaard and Christine Busch 21-17, 21-12.
A delighted Hu reflected on their journey: “We are just doing what we should do. To be honest, I didn’t expect us to reach this far. But our error count has been low, and we’ve been more stable. We tried having longer rallies.”
The in-form duo, who knocked out third seeds Yuta Watanabe and Arisa Higashino along the way, will have a tough battle as they face China’s Zheng Si Wei and Huang Ya Qiong. The world No. 1 pair knocked out South Korea’s Seo Seung Jae and Chae Yu Jung, winning 21-12, 21-17.
The Chinese duo has won all five of their previous encounters.
Men’s Doubles
China’s He Ji Ting and Ren Xiang Yu are eyeing their second BWF title this year after overcoming defending champions Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi in three games, winning 21-16, 19-21, 21-16.
They will compete against Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto (above), who beat Denmark’s Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen 21-11, 16-21, 21-12.
This will be the first meeting between the two pairs.
Women’s Doubles
China’s Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan are on track to defend their Singapore Badminton Open title after defeating their compatriots Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning 21-12, 21-17.
They will face Japan’s Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida (above), who ended India’s Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela’s impressive run at the KFF Singapore Badminton Open, winning 23-21, 21-11.
The world No. 1 pair is favoured to win tomorrow’s finals, having beaten the Japanese duo in their last eight matches. Their most recent clash was at the Thomas & Uber Cup finals, where Chen and Jia won in three games (14-21, 21-13, 23-21).
Organised by the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA), the KFF Singapore Badminton Open is part of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 750 series. The tournament features the top 15 singles players and top 10 doubles pairs, all vying for prestigious titles and a share of the US$850,000 prize money.
