KUALA LUMPUR: Reigning women’s singles world champion An Se-young is bent on rediscovering her magical form of 2023, which saw her secure an impressive 11 titles.
The South Korean believes she is currently operating at 70% of last year’s level.
“I am slowly catching up in each game and tournament,” she told reporters after a hard-fought 16-21, 21-12, 21-19 Malaysia Open quarterfinal victory over Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min that lasted 62 minutes at the Axiata Arena here today.
The 21-year-old’s amazing run last year included securing five consecutive titles, which included the World Championships 2023 and 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games gold medals.
After her Hangzhou Asiad success, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Female Player of the Year faced a setback when she was sidelined for a few weeks with a knee injury last October.
Despite returning to the court in November, Se-young lost in three finals, including the 2023 World Tour Finals in Hangzhou, China, last month.
As for today’s match, the 2023 Malaysia Open runner-up admitted to struggling with the drought in the first game before she managed to adapt to the situation and bounce back for victory.
Asked if she’s eyeing becoming the first South Korean to win the Malaysia Open women’s singles title, the top seed replied, “I am (just) focusing on regaining my form.”
In the semifinals, Se-young will take on China’s Zhang Yi Man, who stunned defending champion Akane Yamaguchi of Japan 12-21, 21-17, 21-17 in the other quarterfinal tie.
Meanwhile, unseeded Taiwanese shuttler Lin Chun-yi continued his remarkable run here when he trounced third seed Li Shi Feng of China 21-12, 21-18 in the men’s singles quarterfinals.
In yesterday’s second-round match, Chun-Yi stunned fifth seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand 21-18, 21-16.
The jubilant Chun-yi will be aiming to maintain his giant-killing act in the semifinal when he faces Denmark’s Anders Antonsen, who fought back from a game down to upstage second seed Kodai Naraoka of Japan 16-21, 21-12, 21-7. - FMT
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