An Se Young overcame an injury scare to script a come-from-behind victory and clinch her ninth BWF World Tour title of the season at the Denmark Open on Sunday. 1 rallied from a game down to beat Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi 21-23, 21-14, 21-18 in the women’s singles final of the Super 750 tournament in Odense, Denmark. The world No.
With Se Young scheduled to compete at the French Open next week, she has the opportunity to move closer to, or even surpass, last season’s title tally. She could also challenge her own record for the highest single-season win rate, having set a mark of 94.8% last year.
Se Young led 18-15 in the opening game but succumbed to Yamaguchi’s fierce attack, eventually losing 21-23 in a tense deuce battle. She trailed 11-13 in the second game before mounting a comeback. Trailing 9-12 midway through, Se Young appeared uncomfortable as she repeatedly touched her ankle, raising concerns about a possible injury. Yamaguchi attempted a late fightback but struggled to breach Se Young’s defence as the South Korean closed out the match 21-18. Se Young’s record for the season now stands at 61 wins and one defeat, giving her a remarkable win rate of 98.4%. She is also on a 44-match winning streak.
This was the fifth consecutive women’s singles final in which Se Young beat Yamaguchi, following her victories over the Japanese player at the Singapore Open, Indonesia Open, World Championships and Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya. The deciding game proved another test of her resilience. She responded with seven consecutive points to overturn the deficit. Her only loss came against China’s Wang Zhiyi in the All England Open final.
