An Se-young withdraws from China Open semifinal due to knee injury

Korean badminton star An Se-young has withdrawn from the China Open semifinals to protect her knee, ending her bid for a historic sweep of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 1000 series this year. An retired during her women’s singles semifinal match against China’s He Bingjiao at the China Open on Saturday, part of the BWF Super 1000 series, held in Zhangzhou. After dropping the first set 18–21, An trailed 6–11 in the second before deciding to forfeit the match. Her withdrawal dashed hopes of completing the first-ever “Super 1000 Slam,” as she had already won three of the tour’s four top-tier events this year, including the Malaysia Open, All England Open, and Indonesia Open. She had also claimed titles at the India Open, Japan Open, and Orléans Masters. A Korea Badminton Association official said An’s decision was made to prioritize recovery ahead of the World Championships next month in Paris. “She’s physically fatigued and her knee isn’t in good condition,” the official said. “There were concerns about aggravating the injury, so she made the prudentWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times