Singapore: An Se Young continues her remarkable streak of reaching the finals in every tournament she has participated in this year by advancing to the Singapore Open final on Saturday.
Highlights of An Se Young vs. Tai Tzu Ying in 2023 Singapore Open semi-finals:
The South Korean badminton prodigy An Se Young secured her second consecutive victory over World No. 3 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei in the women’s singles semi-finals of the Singapore Open with 21-16, 21-14.
This was their eighth encounter, and with this victory, World No. 2 An Se Young extended her lead to six wins and two losses against Tai Tzu Ying.
At just 21 years old, An Se Young has reached the finals in all eight individual tournaments she has participated in this year. Among them, she has won four championships and three runner-up titles. If we also take into account the Sudirman Cup mixed team championships, she has maintained an astonishing 100% record of advancing to the finals of all tournaments she competed in 2023.
An Se Young’s four championships this year include the India Open, Indonesia Masters, All England, and last week’s Thailand Open, while her three runner-up finishes were at the Malaysia Open, German Open, and Badminton Asia Championships.
An will meet Japan’s world number one, Akane Yamaguchi in the final on Sunday. The two have faced each other 19 times before, with An Se Young slightly trailing with 7 wins and 12 losses.
In the other women’s singles semi-final match, Yamaguchi defeated China’s Tokyo Olympic champion Chen Yufei in a thrilling three-game battle that lasted for one hour. Yamaguchi emerged victorious with scores of 21-10, 18-21, and 21-16, marking her 19th victory in their 29th encounter.
Highlights of Akane Yamaguchi vs. Chen Yufei in 2023 Singapore Open semi-finals:
In the deciding game, Yamaguchi nearly squandered a 19-12 lead, allowing Chen Yufei, seeded fourth, to close in at 16-19 by scoring four consecutive points. However, Yamaguchi regrouped and secured two consecutive points to clinch the victory.
Following her triumphs at the Malaysia Open (champion), India Open (runner-up), German Open (champion), and Malaysia Masters (champion), Yamaguchi has now reached the finals for the fifth time this year.
In the mixed doubles semi-finals, World No. 21 Chen Tang Jie/Toh Ee Wei of Malaysia were defeated by Japan’s second seeds, Yuta Watanabe/Arisa Higashino, in their first career head-to-head meeting. The match concluded with scores of 17-21 and a closely contested 22-24 second set, ending Chen/Toh’s campaign in the tournament.
In the second game, Chen/Toh initially took a 6-1 lead but quickly lost their advantage to Watanabe/Higashino. The two pairs engaged in a fierce battle in the second set, where Chen/Toh saved one match point but eventually lost after squandering two game points, resulting in their failure to extend the match to a third game.
Watanabe/Higashino will play Mathias Christiansen/Alexandra Bøje of Denmark in the final.
Meanwhile, China’s Chen Qing Chen/Jia Yi Fan will face Baek Ha Na/Lee So Hee of Korea in the women’s doubles final on Sunday.
