In a captivating final day, China's shuttlers took home all three doubles titles while An Se Young and Shi Yu Qi prevailed in the singles
2 JUNE, SINGAPORE - Four games, sixteen world-class players, 6,240 fans. The KFF Singapore Badminton Open came to a close yesterday after four thrilling finals, but it was An Se Young's Women's Singles win that stole the headlines.
It was battle between the two best players in the world as An defended her Singapore Badminton Open title against World No. 2 Chen Yu Fei — and defend it she did, as she became champion for a second year running.
The first set was closely-fought as the two were in a constant game of catch-up. An eventually played herself into the lead and took the set 21-19.
Olympic Champion Chen didn't go down without a fight. Though the young 22-year-old An may be reigning the Women's Singles, Chen — four years her senior — reminded the world that she too was at the top of the rankings just five years ago.
The Chinese shuttler pushed a fatigued-looking An into a third set, as she responded to the first defeat with a 21-16 win.
The South Korean however, was determined to defend her Singapore Badminton Open title and it showed in her dives across the court to keep rallies alive.
With the score at 19-12, An dove from right to left thrice consecutively, leaving commentators and Chen speechless at her determination to win herself a match point — which she did as what should have been Chen's fatal shot went out of bounds. An then went on to win her second consecutive title after a convincing 21-12 victory.
Ecstatic after a hard-fought win, the 22-year-old said: “This experience of playing my own game and becoming the champion before the Olympics is very important, especially in terms of preparing for the Olympics. It really boosts my confidence.”
With the crowd buzzed after the electrifying final, Shi Yu Qi and Li Shi Feng walked onto the court for an all-China men's singles final.
World No. 2 Shi had previously never overcome Li, having lost all of his previous head-to-heads against his compatriot. As he always has, Li won in rather comfortable fashion in the first set which ended 21-17. The second set, however, was anything but.
Driven by the crowd mostly rallying for him, Shi took the second set 21-19 after a nail-biting exchange of leads. Just like the match prior, the game was forced into a third set to vie for the title.
The third and final set was equally as dramatic, if not more. With Li in a significant lead, it looked as if the World No. 6 was once again about to triumph over Shi. However, the 28-year-old staged a late and dramatic comeback and charged himself into the lead before eventually winning 21-19.
Shi said after his win, "It hasn't been easy, but I'm happy. I know this hall is a challenging venue for all players. This makes my hard work in this tournament all the more rewarding.”
The two games were preceded by that of the Mixed Doubles finals. World No. 1 pair Zheng Si Wei and Huang Ya Qiong won their first Singapore Badminton Open title after defeating Chinese Taipei pair Yang Po-Hsuan and Hu Ling Fang. The victory was a rather straightforward one, with the formidable Chinese pair winning 21-11, 21-19.
China also dominated the Women's and Men's Doubles as their shuttlers triumphed over their opponents to claim their respective titles.
Against Japan's Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida, Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan won 21-15, 21-12 in 50 minutes to become Women's Doubles champions.
Over in the Men's Doubles — which closed off the KFF Singapore Badminton Open as the final match of the day — China's He Jing Ting and Ren Xiang Yu took on fan favourites and World No. 7 pair Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto for the crown.
In just 40 minutes, He and Ren defeated the Indonesians 21-19, 21-14 and took to the final podium ceremony of the tournament.
After what has been a riveting week of world-class badminton, there is no doubt that excitement is already building for the return of the Singapore Badminton Open next year. While the Badminton World Federation (BWF) tour now makes its way to Indonesia, all eyes will be on the Paris 2024 Olympics where Singaporean shuttlers Loh Kean Yew, Yeo Jia Min and Mixed Doubles pair Terry Hee and Jessica Tan are slated to compete.
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