Confident An Se-young Reaches Finals: 'I Don't Care Who Advances'

"I hope whoever it is comes up without getting hurt."

With just one match remaining until she achieves the first-ever consecutive titles in women's singles badminton at the Asian Games, An Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance) expressed her wish that her final opponent would step onto the court in full condition.

It reflects her confidence that she can win a head-to-head showdown no matter who advances.

World number one women's singles player An Se-young defeated fourth-ranked Chen Yufei (China) 2-0 (21-5, 21-12) in the women's singles semifinals of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held today (the 28th) at the Ichinomiya City Gymnasium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

While An wrapped up the match early by overwhelming her opponent with dominant skills, a fierce battle was underway on the adjacent court between world number two Wang Zhiyi (China) and third-ranked Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) for a ticket to the finals.

Meeting reporters in the mixed zone after the match, An calmly stated, "It doesn't matter who makes it to the finals, because the fact that I need to do my best remains unchanged."

This confidence is backed by solid grounds.

An holds an absolute dominance over Wang Zhiyi with 13 wins and 1 loss in their last 14 encounters, and she is also on a blistering 8-match winning streak against Yamaguchi, including the women's team semifinals at this tournament.

As the defending champion from the 2022 Hangzhou Games, An has now established a complete and undisputed dominance.

Cementing her status as an unrivaled powerhouse with a phenomenal 98 percent win rate this season, she continued her overwhelming run with today's victory, marking only 1 loss out of 56 matches played this year.

Even against Chen Yufei, her former "nemesis" who once handed her seven consecutive defeats and left her in tears, An completely controlled the court on this day to secure her fifth consecutive win in their recent matchups.

After finishing her round of 32 match in 20 minutes, the round of 16 in 35 minutes, and the quarterfinals against world number five Ratchanok Intanon (Thailand) in 35 minutes, she wrapped up today's semifinals in just 40 minutes.

Yet, despite her near-flawless performance, An gave herself a score of "85."

"My standard for 100 points is not giving up a single point and playing error-free," she said, adding, "I always imagine such play happening, which seems to keep me continuously motivated."

She further revealed her thirst for even more perfect skills, noting that compared to Chen Yufei—whom she decisively defeated today—she still feels she lacks in certain areas.

An pointed out, "Chen Yufei hits the shuttlecock precisely along the lines from any position, creating tremendous pressure. I can only hit with that precision from good chances, and I have only followed about half of that ability so far."

If An, who swept both the team and singles events at the 2022 Hangzhou Games, defends her singles crown at this tournament as well, she will achieve the unprecedented feat of winning back-to-back women's singles titles in Asian Games badminton.

With such a monumental record ahead, the focused attention could easily bring heavy pressure, but her nearly flawless performance almost gives the impression that she is simply enjoying the court.

However, An smiled and said, "Even when you resolve to enjoy it, the Asian Games doesn't seem like a stage you can just easily enjoy."

She added, "That's why pushing forward with my own play confidently without hesitation on the court makes me a little more excited."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.