An Se-young wins Indonesia Open with thrilling comeback over Wang Zhiyi

South Korea's An Se-young celebrates after defeating China's Wang Zhiyi during their women's singles final match at the Indonesia Open badminton tournament at Istora Stadium in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sunday. AP-Yonhap

World No. 1 An Se-young clinched her fifth title of the year by winning the Indonesia Open, marking her first victory at the tournament in four years. The Korean badminton star staged a thrilling comeback against China’s Wang Zhiyi in the women’s singles final held in Jakarta on Sunday.

An defeated world No. 2 Wang 2-1 (13-21, 21-19, 21-15) in the final of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 1000 event. The win avenged her runner-up finish last year, when she lost to long-time rival Chen Yufei of China.

With this triumph, An has now won five out of the six tournaments she has entered this season. She began the year with back-to-back titles at the Malaysia Open and India Open in January, followed by wins at the Orléans Masters and All England Open in March.

Her only loss came at the Singapore Open, where she was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Chen Yufei.

An cruised to the final in Jakarta with straight-set wins over Busanan Ongbamrungphan of Thailand in the round of 32, Kim Ga-eun in the round of 16, Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand in the quarterfinals, and Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi in the semifinals.

However, she faced early struggles in the final against Wang, dropping the first set 13-21.

An Se-young, right, poses with runner-up China's Wang Zhiyi following their women's singles final match at the Indonesia Open badminton tournament at Istora Senayan in Jakarta, Sunday. AFP-Yonhap

Trailing 1-7 in the second set and down 11-17, An turned the tide with a six-point streak, eventually taking the set 21-19. She maintained her momentum into the third, pulling away with another six consecutive points to win 21-15 and seal the title.

Wang, who had also fallen to An in the finals of both the Malaysia Open and All England Open this year, was once again denied the championship. Meanwhile, Chen Yufei withdrew from the quarterfinals due to injury.

“Everyone has helped me so much, and that support allowed me to grow,” An said after the match. “I’ve just been focused on doing what I need to do, giving my best effort.” When asked about the comeback, she added, “I just believed in myself.”

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.