An Se-young
Korean superstar An Se-young staged a magnificent comeback to reclaim the Denmark Open badminton championships women’s singles crown as Alex Lanier became the first Frenchman to lift the men’s singles title.
For Se-young it was title that looked to be slipping away to a hard fighting Japanese Akane Yamaguchi.
Down 11-5 at the decider’s interval, Se-young looked destined to wait another week for her landmark victory. Then, in that moment of doubt, the champion fans know best emerged.
Eleven of the next 12 points fell her way and suddenly there was no stopping the world No.1 from claiming her 47th title. The triumph, a hard-fought 21-23 21-14 21-18 victory over made her the most decorated women’s singles player in international badminton history, moving one title clear of Indonesian great Susi Susanti.
“I want to make a lot of history and break records, but I focus on one match at a time, An said from the SJF Bank Arena.
“That is my motivation. The crowds turn out for me, and I’m so happy that people enjoy every match I play.”
The milestone was achieved in far from ideal circumstances. An suffered a slip during the second game and admitted she was still assessing the impact afterwards.
“I’m not feeling great. The court conditions were difficult and I slipped. I’ll check my condition and talk to my trainer. After that, I’ll decide what to do.”
In the deciding game, the slower side of the court helped restore her confidence as she mounted a remarkable comeback.
“I felt more confident because the court was slower. I had more confidence, and I was more passionate. I thought, ‘This is my win.’”
Despite the physical discomfort, the popular Korean shuttler was all smiles when sharing the support she receives in Denmark. The 24-year-old said the atmosphere and backing from the fans make her feel at home.
“There are many people who are proud of me, and Danish fans too. That makes me so happy and makes me enjoy playing. I always feel at home in Denmark. I hope it always feels like home.”
Asked about her rivalry with Yamaguchi, whom she has now faced 38 times, An described the Japanese shuttler as a constant source of motivation. “I think she is my best rival. I always want to win matches against her. She motivates me to practice. Wang Zhi Yi and Chen Yu Fei are rivals too, and I’m happy to have them. Rivalry makes you better.”
With another trophy secured and another record broken, there was little time to celebrate. “I need to pack now and eat something good as I’m off to Paris.”
Lanier made history by becoming the first Frenchman to win the Denmark Open since 1936 after defeating home hero Anders Antonsen 21-15 13-21 21-13.
“I came into Denmark without any certitude. I’m proud that I played very smart in this tournament, which gave me the opportunity not to use my physicality that much, and I think the way I’ve been playing this tournament it’s very interesting and also one aspect that I want to explore more.”
The Frenchman took the opening game, but Antonsen responded strongly in the second to force a decider. With the title at stake, Lanier raised his intensity and eventually secured another major triumph.
“It was a very tactical match, but in the third game the key was also to bring in a little bit more physicality and a little bit more intensity,” Lanier explained afterwards.
“I definitely tried to bring in more aggressiveness in everything I was doing and also tried to put more pace on the game. I think it made the difference.”
Despite his impressive performances throughout the week, Lanier admitted that winning the title had come as a surprise.
“Everything went the way I wanted it, definitely not as I planned before the tournament. I was not expecting this. I’m definitely happy.”
For Antonsen, the defeat marked a disappointing end to an otherwise successful two weeks, having won the Arctic Open last Sunday before reaching his third Denmark Open final.
There was history for the Malaysian women’s doubles pair of Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan as they they won their second Super 750 title with a 21-18 21-11 win over Hinata SuzukiNao Yamakita opf Japan. It was also the first win the mixed doubles for a Malaysian pair in Denmark in 18-years.
“I think we didn’t do well on emotional side this week. We got too emotional (during our quarterfinal match against Teresa Jolly-Pullela Gopichand) and we got carried away in those few points. But then we reminded ourselves not to leave any regrets. We didn’t want to lose that way, so we got back up. Then we just wanted to play each rally and each point fiercely and also more aggressive,” said Thinaah.
FINAL RESULTS
Men’s Singles: Alex Lanier (Fra) bt Anders Antonsen (Den) 21-15, 13-21, 21-13
Men’s Doubles: Fajar Alfian-Muigammad Shohibul Fikri (Ina) bt Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (Mas) 21-8, 21-11
Women’s Singles: An Se-young (Kor) bt Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) 21-23, 21-14, 21-18
Women’s Doubles: Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan (Mas) bt Hinata Suzuki-Nao Yamakita (Jpn) 21-18, 21-11
Mixed Doubles: Jiang Zhenbang-Wei Yaxin (Chn) bt Feng Yanzhe-Huang Dongping (Chn) 21-18, 8-21, 21-16
