An Se-young, the 24-year-old Samsung Life Insurance player who dominates women's badminton, is carrying a 98.5% win rate this year. That raises an obvious question: how much higher can the number go before the season ends?
Nine tournaments remain on the Badminton World Federation calendar, the BWF said on the 26th. An, the world No. 1 in women's singles, is expected to enter two of them — the Victor Yeosu Korea Open, which opens on Nov. 3 in Yeosu, Jeonnam-Gwangju, and the BWF World Tour Finals in Hong Kong in December.
An slipped during the Denmark Open final on the 18th of this month and twisted her foot, injuring the area around her right Achilles tendon. Tests showed the injury was not serious, but the pain appeared to persist through the following French Open. She clearly needs rest.
That has prompted speculation she may skip the Victor Korea Open. But one badminton official predicted she would play the domestic event, saying she has a strong personal interest in a tournament held near her hometown of Gwangju and would want to make up for losing last year's final to Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, the world No. 2.
An claimed her third straight French Open title on the 25th for her 10th championship of the season, bringing her official record this year to 66 wins and one loss in 67 matches. Sweeping the Victor Korea Open and the World Tour Finals would push her win rate to 98.7%. That would surpass the single-season best of 98.4% she set last year and leave her with a record across both men's and women's singles. Two more titles would take her past the single-season record of 11 championships for another mark.