World No. 1 An Se-young (Samsung Life) is set to face China's No. 4 Chen Yufei in the semifinals of the women's singles badminton at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, aiming for her second consecutive title.
An will compete against Chen on the 28th. In badminton at the Asian Games, there is no bronze medal match, so An has already secured a medal by reaching the semifinals.
With two matches remaining for the gold medal, if An wins, she will become the first player to achieve back-to-back titles in women's singles since badminton was officially included in the Asian Games in 1962 in Jakarta. She would also be the first player in Korean badminton history to win consecutive singles titles.
An and Chen previously met in the final of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, where An, despite battling knee pain, triumphed over Chen 2-1 (21-18, 17-21, 21-8) to claim the gold medal.
Chen was once considered An's 'rival,' but recent matchups have shifted in An's favor. In their last five encounters, An has won four, leading the overall head-to-head record 17-14. This year, An has only one loss (54 wins) and has not lost to Chen.
The contrasting trajectories of the two players were evident in the quarterfinals. On the 27th, An easily defeated Thailand's veteran Ratchanok Intanon (No. 5) 2-0 (21-8, 21-9) at the Ichinomiya City Gymnasium in Aichi, conceding just 17 points across both games.
In contrast, Chen faced a tough battle against India's P.V. Sindhu (No. 11), winning 2-1 (11-21, 21-18, 21-10) after a grueling 1 hour and 15 minutes.
As An prepares to meet Chen again on the brink of the final, she expressed her determination in a post-match interview, stating, "I need to have confidence because I have often felt smaller when facing Chen. I will approach the match calmly and stay true to myself."
An's path to the semifinals was not without challenges. The tournament organizers scheduled the badminton individual events to last five days, one day shorter than the Hangzhou Games. Consequently, An had to play both the round of 32 and round of 16 on the same day, the 26th.
"It was very tough to play two matches yesterday, but my opponent was also struggling, which helped me win," An said. "I think it was difficult for Intanon, who is older than me, to play two matches in one day. I tried to stay focused because I am younger."
The scheduling also led to a 'tailing' operation, where matches could only start after the previous one finished, causing the matches on the 26th to extend past midnight. Players who advanced to the round of 16 had little time to rest before competing in the quarterfinals the next morning.
An commented on the tournament's organization, saying, "I discussed with (Kim) Ga-eun about how playing two matches in one day feels like asking players to 'work themselves to death.' There are aspects of the schedule that I find disappointing."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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