(Reporter Na Seung-woo, Xports News) The unusual ‘debt lottery’ that appeared at the 2025 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Final group drawing ceremony sharply divided the fates of Ahn Se-young and Wang Zhiyi (China).
While Ahn Se-young predicted a difficult and thorny path as she was placed in the same group as her ‘natural enemy’ Akane Yamaguchi (Japan), second seed Wang Ziyi faced mixed emotions as she accepted a relatively easy match.
BWF held a drawing ceremony for the 2025 World Tour Finals group stage in Hangzhou, China on the 13th (Korean time). Instead of drawing opaque balls, the event attracted attention as it was held in a unique way, taking advantage of the traditional culture of Hangzhou, the host city, by unfolding and checking a red folding fan with the names of the participating players and their group (A/B) written on it.
Every time an elegant fan was unfolded, the tension in the room increased, resulting in a cruel outcome for Ahn Se-young.
Group A, where world No. 1 Ahn Se-young belongs, is literally the ‘Group of Death.’ This is because ‘World Championship Champion’ Akane Yamaguchi, who was the most difficult opponent, headed to Group A through a fan lottery.
Ahn Se-young must compete not only with Yamaguchi, but also with Indonesia’s powerhouse Putri Putri Kusuma Wardani and Japan’s phenom Tomoka Miyazaki.
Since there are two Japanese players and a badminton powerhouse Indonesian player, a fierce battle like a final is expected in each game.
In particular, the match with Yamaguchi, who was on par with Ahn Se-young in terms of match record, is expected to be a watershed in the fight for first place in the group.
BWF said, “World No. 1 Ahn Se-young is attempting to achieve a record 11th career win, but is expected to have a difficult start as she is placed in the same group as world champion Akane Yamaguchi. The Olympic champion and world champion will face off in the women’s singles group A, which features rising stars Wardani and Miyazaki.”
On the other hand, China’s Wang Ziyi, who received the second seed, breathed a sigh of relief. Wang Ziyi was placed in Group B along with his country’s teammate Han Yue and Thailand’s Pornpawi Chochuwong and Ratchanok Inthanon.
Not only did he avoid both Yamaguchi and Ahn Se-young, but he was also grouped with Thai veteran players whose skills were relatively on the decline, giving him a green light to advance to the semifinals. From Wang Ziyi’s perspective, this is the best match made possible by a fan.
Photo = Yonhap News / BWF
Reporter Na Seung-woo [email protected]
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