Olympic champion An Se-young wins All England Open, China’s Shi Yuqi takes men’s crown
South Korean An beats China’s world No 2 Wang Zhiyi to win world’s oldest badminton event for second time, as does China’s world No 1 Shi
Olympic women’s badminton champion An Se-young came from behind to beat China’s Wang Zhiyi 13-21, 21-18, 21-18 in a classic All England Open final on Sunday as top seed Shi Yuqi lifted the men’s crown.
World No 2 Wang won the first game convincingly and edged into a 13-10 lead during a captivating second game in Birmingham but the South Korean, who won the title in 2023, pegged her back.
Wang scented victory when the scores were tied at 18-18 in the second game but her South Korean opponent took the next three points to level the match.
The decider was also a tight affair but again An, 23, pulled away when the players were level at 18-18, winning her fourth tournament in a row and second at the All England.
“I had all sorts of emotions going through my mind during the second game,” said An. “The thought that was concrete in my mind was not giving up.
“That thought motivated me to keep playing and I think that led to today’s win.