'62 wins, 1 loss; 98.4% win rate' An Se-young's class explodes again, French Open three-peat in sight... Defeats Sharma to advance to quarterfinals

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It is the overwhelming class of the world's strongest player. An Se-young (24, Samsung Life) continued her smooth run toward a third consecutive French Open title.

An Se-young, ranked No. 1 in the world in women's singles, secured a spot in the quarterfinals by crushing Tanvi Sharma (India, world No. 21) in just 37 minutes with a score of 2-0 (21-11, 21-14) in the Round of 16 of the 2026 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour French Open (Super 750) women's singles event held on the 22nd (Korea time) in Trappes-en-France, France.

She completely dispelled concerns about right Achilles tendon pain that had occurred during the final of the recent Denmark Open. An Se-young faced a crisis by complaining of foot pain during the third game of the final against Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) on the 18th, but climbed to the top with a dramatic comeback victory. Following this, she dominated Amalie Schulz (Denmark) in just 25 minutes in the Round of 32 the previous day, winning 2-0 (21-6, 21-4), and continued her incredible record of 62 wins and 1 loss in 63 matches this year (98.4% win rate).

An Se-young's focus also shone in the first game of the Round of 16 match on this day. The early flow was somewhat shaky. An Se-young was pushed back by Sharma's consecutive attacks immediately after the start of the match, ceding a lead to fall behind 0-4, and started nervously while trailing 1-5.

However, An Se-young did not waver and immediately launched a counterattack. She scored five consecutive points to instantly reverse the situation to 6-5. After tying at 6-6, she continued to rack up consecutive points based on stable court coverage to take a lead of 9-6, and reached the interval leading 11-8.

The second half was a one-man show for An Se-young. An Se-young, who had taken a lead of 14-9 by scoring three consecutive points from 11-9, swept up six consecutive points by combining flawless defense and sharp smashes in a situation where she led 15-11. Having completely tied down her opponent's feet, An Se-young took the first game with a decisive victory by a 10-point margin of 21-11.

In the second game as well, Sharma's fierce resistance continued, but it was not enough to turn the tide. An Se-young appeared to be ceding control in the early part of the second game, trailing 0-3, 2-6, and then 5-9. But

Here, An Se-young's late-game power exploded once again. She swept up five consecutive points to successfully reverse the score to 10-9, and entered the second half with a narrow lead of 11-10.

The tense flow after the interval was instantly decided by An Se-young's consecutive scoring. In a razor-thin contest with a one-point difference at 15-14, An Se-young's iron-wall defense shone. Having perfectly blocked Sharma's attacks, An Se-young allowed not a single point and unleashed an overwhelming decisive power by chasing six consecutive points to secure match point, then put the final period on the 37th-minute battle with a score of 21-14.

An Se-young, aiming for a three-peat at the French Open following her titles in 2024 and 2025, will complete the great record of her 11th victory this season and consecutive wins in five tournaments (World Championships, China Masters, Asian Games, Denmark Open, French Open) if she dominates this tournament as well.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original