▲ An Se-young
Continuing her phenomenal momentum with a win rate exceeding 98%, world badminton powerhouse An Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance) has reached the finals of the French Open, moving a step closer to her 10th title of the season.
World No. 1 An easily defeated Nozomi Okuhara (ranked 9th, Japan) 2-0 (21-12, 21-19) in 45 minutes during the women's singles semifinals of the French Open held in Tremblay-en-France today (October 24).
With this win, An brought her record this year to 65 wins and 1 loss, boasting an overwhelming win rate of 98.5%.
Extending her head-to-head winning streak against Okuhara to 7 matches, An once again proved her class on a different level.
In the first game, An secured a commanding victory with a 9-point gap without allowing a single successful comeback. In the second game, she briefly gave up the lead, falling behind 3-7 early on.
However, she immediately turned the tide by scoring 7 consecutive points, and after allowing an 11-11 tie, she unleashed fierce concentration to clinch the victory.
An will face the winner of the semifinal match between Pusarla Sindhu (India) and Hina Akehata (Japan) in the final.
While strong rivals Wang Zhiyi (ranked 2nd, China) and Akane Yamaguchi (ranked 3rd, Japan) were eliminated in the Round of 16 after suffering shocking 0-2 defeats side by side, An advanced to the finals comfortably.
If An wins the final match, she will lift her 10th championship trophy of the season.
Aside from the All England Open where she claimed the silver medal this season, An has stood at the highest step of the podium in all 9 individual tournaments she has competed in this year, including the Asian Games.
Furthermore, a victory in this tournament would mark her third consecutive title win at the event.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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