Source:REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
[Saba Sports News] In the women’s singles final of the French Badminton Open, Olympic champion and Korean badminton queen An Se-young defeated world No. 2 Chinese player Wang Zhiyi 2-0 to claim the title, securing her seventh consecutive victory over the latter. It is worth mentioning that after the match, An Se-young shook hands and bowed with Wang Zhiyi. The two engaged in a warm conversation, during which An inquired about Wang’s physical condition. It is reported that An Se-young also invited Wang Zhiyi to dinner. Off the court, they are very good friends, which has become a much-talked-about cross-border friendship. Wang Zhiyi’s friendly attitude towards An Se-young is because An has good character; she is very polite to Chinese players, including showing concern for Chen Yufei’s injury and respecting opponents like Wang Zhiyi. Furthermore, An Se-young is not only Wang Zhiyi’s good friend but also a deserving top athlete. Wang genuinely feels happy for An’s victory. This also explains why Wang Zhiyi seemed quite pleased. Of course, the world No. 2 Wang Zhiyi still needs to improve as soon as possible in areas such as mental adjustment, on-the-spot adaptability, and the application of skills and tactics. Regardless, a seven-match losing streak against An Se-young is somewhat hard to justify.