Odense: An Se Young of Korea, who recently returned to competition at the Super 750 Denmark Open, staged yet another comeback today. She defeated Thailand’s Supanida Katethong, ranked 11th in the world, with a score of 12-21, 21-10, 21-12, to claim her fourth consecutive victory over the Thai player and secure a spot in the 2024 Denmark Open semifinals.
An Se Young has zero communication with coach – Sung Ji-Hyun from the Badminton Korea Association in both the Denmark Open second round (against Ratchanok Intanon):
An Se Young has zero communication with coach – Sung Ji-Hyun from the Badminton Korea Association in both the Denmark Open quarter-finals (against Supanida Katethong):
The 22-year-old, who won gold in women’s singles at the Paris Olympics, made headlines after speaking out about long-term unfair treatment by the Badminton Korea Association, which caused a public uproar. Since the Olympics, An has skipped several BWF tournaments due to a knee injury, relinquishing her world number-one title and dropping to second in the rankings.
In Friday’s match, An struggled in the first set, making several errors and falling behind 4-14, allowing Katethong to take the lead. However, she regained her rhythm in the second set, adjusting her game to prevent Katethong from finding any breakthroughs. An dominated the set to level the score.
In the deciding third set, An maintained control of the game, forcing her opponent into long rallies and capitalizing on multiple net errors. After a 10-9 lead, An launched an 11-3 run, securing another comeback victory. She will face Indonesia’s Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, the Paris Olympic bronze medalist, in the semifinals.
In men’s singles, Danish badminton star Anders Antonsen advanced to the semifinals of the Denmark Open after a dramatic victory over China’s Li Shifeng 12-21, 21-8, 22-20.
The third set between Antonsen and Li turned into a closely contested drama.
Antonsen played at a faster pace and delivered powerful smashes, but he remained just a point or two behind Li, who continued to impress at the net. As the set neared its conclusion, Antonsen, benefiting from his superior physical condition, took the lead at 15-14. Both players were visibly fired up, with the referee eventually having to calm them down. Li received a yellow card later in the set.
In the final moments, Li’s stamina ran out, and Antonsen secured victory on his second match point. Frustrated, Li smashed his racket into the ground, earning a red card.
Antonsen will take on Kenta Nishimoto of Japan on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Malaysia’s Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik fell to Chen Bo Yang/Liu Yi of China 20-22, 15-21 in a 41-minute men’s doubles quarter-finals battle.
