"What crime did the opponent commit?" An Se-young packed her bags in 'just 25 minutes'... Defying Achilles tendon pain with an insane 98.4% win rate, she advances to the Round of 16 at the French Open

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

An Se-young (24, Samsung Life) has shed concerns over a right-foot Achilles tendon injury and made a smooth start toward winning her third consecutive title at the French Open.

World No. 1 women's singles player An Se-young defeated Amalie Schultz of Denmark 2-0 (21-6, 21-4) in the Round of 32 match at the 2026 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour French Open (Super 750), held in Paris, France on the 21st (Korean time), to advance to the Round of 16.

There were no lingering effects from the injury she sustained in the final of the recent Denmark Open. In the final against Akane Yamaguchi of Japan on the 18th, An Se-young overcame Achilles tendon pain in her right foot while trailing 5-11 in the third game to secure a dramatic comeback victory.

Despite concerns about an injury, she ended the match in just 25 minutes with overwhelming performance.

Across both games, she allowed only 10 points to her opponent. After easily taking the first game 21-6, she scored six consecutive points while leading 13-3 in the second game, completely dominating Schultz.

With this win, An Se-young continued her dominant record of 62 wins and 1 loss in 63 matches this year, maintaining a 98.4% win rate. Following her gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics and her victory at the Asian Championships last April, An Se-young solidified her status as an 'absolute powerhouse' by achieving the first-ever women's singles back-to-back titles in badminton history at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games last month.

An Se-young, who stood atop this tournament in 2024 and 2025, is challenging for a third consecutive title. If she conquers this French Open as well, it will be her 11th victory of the season and achieve consecutive wins across five tournaments (World Championships, China Masters, Asian Games, Denmark Open, and French Open).

Attention is now on whether An Se-young, who has perfectly erased even the variable of Achilles tendon pain, will continue her unrivaled run in the remaining tournament.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original