Ahn Se-young completely defeats Wang Zhi… First competition win of the new year
Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae take down Malaysia, ranked second in the world
Baek Hana and Lee Sohee are completely defeated by world number one China
World No. 1 Ahn Se-young defeated world No. 2 Wang Zhiyi (China) with a game score of 2-0 (21-15 24-22) in the women’s singles final of the 2026 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 1000 Malaysia Open held at the Asiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on the 11th.
Ahn Se-young, who achieved the best performance last year by tying the record for the most wins in a single season (11 wins), the highest winning percentage (94.8%, 73 wins, 4 losses), and exceeding $1 million in accumulated prize money ($1,003,175), started the new year fresh by winning the Malaysia Open, the first tournament of the season.
Ahn Se-young, who reached the top of the competition in 2024 and 2025, successfully defended her title this year and achieved her third consecutive victory.
In addition, Ahn Se-young maintained an overwhelming advantage over Wang Zhiyi, recording a total record of 17 wins and 4 losses.
Ahn Se-young, who won all eight matches last year, made Wang Ziyi cry in their first meeting this year as well.
After that, Ahn Se-young, who gave up points in succession, took a breather as Wang Ziyi made a series of mistakes, and at game point, Wang Ziyi’s attack went off the line and took the lead.
Ahn Se-young smiled after a fierce battle that reached a deuce in game 2.
He had difficulty blocking Wang Ziyi’s diagonal attack in the beginning, and was dragged down to 8-14 due to several mistakes.
However, Ahn Se-young’s attack that shook the left and right sides of the court revived, and at the same time, Wang Ziyi’s stamina dropped sharply, making the score tied at 19-19.
Later, at 22-22, Wang Zhiyi’s attack was caught in the net, and Ahn Se-young took the match point, and then succeeded in a sharp diagonal attack, confirming the win.
Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae, who achieved 11 wins last season and tied the record for most wins in a single season set by Ahn Se-young last year and Kento Momota (Japan) in men’s singles in 2019, continued their upward trend by winning the first competition of the new year.
Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae won their second consecutive title by reaching the top of the Malaysia Open this year as they did last year.
The two consistently put pressure on their opponents with fierce attacks and even displayed solid defense, demonstrating the power of the ‘golden combination’.
Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae avenged their loss in the Singapore Open finals in June last year with their victory that day. They are ahead of their opponents with 2 wins and 1 loss.
Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae, who widened the gap by producing 4 points in a row at 11-10 in game 1, took the lead without losing control in the second half.
Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae lost in the second game, 11-14, after allowing four consecutive goals, but reached the championship by scoring 21 points first in the final three games of a fierce battle.
Baek Hana and Lee Sohee, who signaled a revival by dominating the World Tour Finals, also known as the King of Kings last month, attempted to win two consecutive competitions, but had to be satisfied with second place.
Baek Ha-na and Lee So-hee, who had laid a stepping stone to victory by defeating Ryu Seong-soo and Tanning in the semifinals of the World Tour Finals, bowed their heads in a rematch that took place three weeks later.
Moreover, their record against Ryu Seong-su and Tanning was 6 wins and 7 losses.
It was painful for both of them not to be able to win the first game. It was tight until the midway point and they took a 16-15 lead, but they lost 5 points in a row and were cornered.
Baek Hana and Lee Sohee narrowed the gap by making up 2 points, but the chase came to an end when they conceded a game point.
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