(Source = Yonhap News)
[파이낸셜뉴스] The Great Wall of China collapsed like a sand castle. He also fell to his knees before Ahn Se-young’s racket even touched him. The pride of Chinese badminton, the world’s strongest, was literally reduced to a piece of paper in front of the ‘Shuttlecock Empress’ Ahn Se-young (Samsung Life Insurance, No. 1 in the world rankings).
Ahn Se-young entered the finals of the 2026 BWF Malaysia Open without blood. This is because China’s Chen Yufei (4th), his opponent in the semifinals, which was originally scheduled to be held on the morning of the 10th, announced his withdrawal with only 12 hours left in the match.
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) officially announced the news of Chen Yufei’s withdrawal on the night of the 9th (Korean time). The superficial reasons are injuries and poor physical condition.
However, there are not many fans who truly believe this. The prevailing interpretation is that Ahn Se-young’s recent ‘crazy form’ is evidence of how much fear it poses to Chinese players.
Chen Yufei declared withdrawal with 12 hours left in the final. Newsis
The ‘Ahn Se-young avoidance’ among Chinese players in this tournament is at a serious level. World No. 5 Han Hue, who was expected to meet Ahn Se-young in the quarterfinals, withdrew early due to a cold, and even Chen Yu-fei, who was China’s last hope, also withdrew.
From Chen Yufei’s perspective, there is a possibility that he lost his fighting spirit after watching Ahn Se-young’s game the day before.
Ahn Se-young finished the match in 34 minutes against a Danish player in the quarterfinals with shocking scores of 21-8, 21-9. It was truly a performance at the level of ‘massacre of civilians.’ Chen Yufei, who watched this, must have been afraid that if he faced An Se-young in a sloppy manner, he could suffer an irreparable defeat.
In the end, China chose to ‘run away without fighting’ rather than ‘fight and lose’.
Even before the confrontation with Ahn Se-young took place, he made a series of ‘declarations of surrender’. In front of the huge mountain called Ahn Se-young, the pride of Chinese badminton disappeared completely.
Ahn Se-young of the Korean badminton team is happy after winning her match against Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi in the badminton women’s singles quarterfinals at the 2024 Paris Olympics held at La Chapelle Arena in Paris, France on the 3rd (Korean time). 2024.8.3/News1 ⓒ News1 Reporter Lee Dong-hae / Photo = News1
As a result, Ahn Se-young took a great rest and saved 100% of her stamina. No matter who her opponent is in the finals, ‘hell’ awaits her as she has to face Ahn Se-young, who shows no signs of fatigue and is fresh and energetic. Ahn Se-young already showed her composure right after the quarterfinals, saying, “I’m enjoying the game.”
Heaven also helps, and his skills have already reached the divine realm. Ahn Se-young’s achievement of three consecutive Malaysia Open titles has now become a ‘constant’ beyond any doubt. While the Chinese players are running wild, Ahn Se-young is humming and walking toward the championship trophy.
jsi@fnnews.com Reporter Jeon Sang-il
Copyright © Financial News. Reproduction and redistribution prohibited.
