*This content was translated by AI.
The struggle in the previous round was a perfect performance out of nowhere. Badminton world No. 1 Ahn Se-young (24, Samsung Life Insurance) succeeded in advancing to the semifinals by showing off her overwhelming skills from the first tournament of the 2026 season.
Ahn Se-young defeated Line Hoeimarck Kiersfeld (26th in the world) with a set score of 2-0 (21-8 21-9) in the quarterfinals of the women's singles at the 2026 World Badminton Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 1000 Malaysia Open at Asiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on the 9th (Korea time).
Initially, Ahn Se-young's opponent in the quarterfinals was Han Yu (China), ranked fifth in the world. Hanwe got off to a good start by defeating South Korea's Kim Ga-eun 2-0 in the round of 32 on the first day of the tournament. However, ahead of the round of 16, Kiersfeld won a lucky ticket to the quarterfinals as Hanwe declared withdrawal due to flu symptoms.
Ahn Se-young pushed his opponent from the start of the first game. He attempted an aggressive attack early in the game and faced the interval with ease at 11-4. The second half was no different. Ahn widened the gap by more than 10 points, bringing the game to 21-8 lightly. It took only 15 minutes to finish the first game.
In the second game, Kiersfeld countered aggressively. Ahn Se-young induced a mistake by taking the opponent's strong ball with a complete control, and was hit by the interval with a generous lead of 11-6.
Since then, the game has tilted sharply. Kiersfeld's foot stuck to the court as Ahn Se-young shook his opponent with an elaborate shot that poked every corner of the court. In 12-8 situations, Ahn sealed the match with seven points down, eventually finishing 21–9.
It was a perfect victory in 34 minutes of total game time. With this, Ahn Se-young increased his opponent's record to six games.
On the 6th, he won 2-1 in the round of 32 against Michelle Lee (Canada) after 1 hour and 15 minutes of bloodshed, and there seemed to be a physical aftermath, such as almost losing one game in the round of 16 against Nozomi Okuhara (Japan).
However, Ahn Se-young, who quickly regained her pace during the tournament, showed off her overwhelming performance in the quarterfinals, greatly increasing the possibility of winning three consecutive tournaments.
Ahn Se-young, who has settled in the semifinals, will meet the biggest enemy on the final road. His opponent in the semifinals is Chen Yufei (China, world No. 4).
Chen Yufei defeated Thailand's Rachanok Intanon 2-0 (21-13 21-14) in the quarterfinals held on the same day to advance to the semifinals.
The two players' all-time records are tight at 14 wins and 14 losses. However, Ahn Se-young is good for the recent trend. Ahn Se-young had an advantage with 5 wins and 2 losses in seven matches against Chen Yu-fei last year.
Ahn Se-young posted unprecedented records last year. He swept 11 wins on the BWF World Tour alone in the 2025 season, matching the record of most wins in a single season set by Japan's Kento Momota in 2019.
He also set a series of phenomenal records. Despite the 77 games played last year, Ahn Se-young recorded 73 wins and 4 losses, achieving a phenomenal 94.8% winning rate, breaking the record for the highest winning rate in a single BWF season. In addition, he added $240,000 in prize money by winning the World Tour Finals, a king of the season, and built a gold tower to open the era of $1 million (about 1.43 billion won) for the first time in BWF history.
Amid her unprecedented performance, Ahn was honored as the BWF Female Player of the Year for the third consecutive year and the Player of the Year for the second consecutive year.
Ahn Se-young's watch doesn't stop. In the early hours of Jan. 1, just 10 days after returning home after the end of last season, Ahn began the new season by leaving for Malaysia via Incheon International Airport. After the Malaysian Open, he will immediately move to New Delhi, India, and participate in the Indian Open from the 13th.
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*This content was translated by AI.
