An Se-young defeated Akane Yamaguchi 2–1 in the 2026 Korea Open final, securing her 11th title of the season and 55th consecutive win. She once again put her name alongside the record for the most titles in a season across men’s and women’s singles.
World No. 1 An Se-young of Samsung Life Insurance won the 2026 Korea Open women’s singles title, becoming the first player in badminton history to win 11 titles in two consecutive seasons.
In the women’s singles final of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 500 Korea Open, held November 8 at Jinnam Gymnasium in Yeosu, An Se-young defeated world No. 2 Akane Yamaguchi of Japan 2–1 (21–12, 15–21, 21–16) to lift her 11th trophy of the season.
An Se-young claimed her third Korea Open title, following wins in 2022 and 2023. She also put behind her defeat to Yamaguchi in last year’s final, returning to the top of the home tournament after three years.
World Nos. 1 and 2 face off, with the match decided in the final game
The final pitted the world’s top two women’s singles players against each other. An Se-young took the first game, but Yamaguchi fought back to force a decider.
Leading narrowly 7–6 in the first game, An relied on her trademark steady defense to repel Yamaguchi’s attacks and reached the interval ahead 11–9. She then widened the gap with well-timed short net shots and smashes.
An won seven straight points from 12–10 to pull ahead 19–10 and took the first game 21–12. But she struggled against Yamaguchi’s aggressive play at the net in the second, losing 15–21.
In the deciding third game, An regained the momentum with an early 6–2 lead. After reaching the interval ahead 11–9, she scored five straight points to extend her lead to 16–9 before sealing the win 21–16.
An Se-young matches Kento Momota’s 2019 record for a second straight year
The victory’s greatest significance is that, for the first time in badminton history, a player has won 11 titles in two consecutive seasons across men’s and women’s singles.
The previous record for most titles in a single season was 11, set by Japan’s Kento Momota in men’s singles in 2019. An matched it in 2025, joining him at the top of the all-time list.
With this year’s Korea Open victory, An reached 11 titles again. Beyond tying the single-season record, she became the first player to repeat the feat in two consecutive years.
An Se-young’s 11 titles this year comprise eight BWF World Tour titles and gold medals at the Asian Championships, World Championships and Asian Games—not 11 World Tour titles alone.
Notably, she has won 11 of the 12 individual tournaments she entered this year, finishing runner-up only at the All England Open. That record shows her competitiveness is not limited to any one tournament.
A 71–1 record, 55 straight wins and a higher win rate than last year
As of November 8, 2026, An Se-young’s season record stands at 71 wins and one loss in 72 matches, a win rate of 98.61%.
That is about 3.8 percentage points higher than her 94.81% season win rate last year, when she recorded 73 wins and four losses in 77 matches.
Her only loss this year came against China’s Wang Zhiyi in the All England Open final in March. Since then, she has won 55 consecutive matches through the Korea Open final.
She has also won six consecutive international tournaments, taking the title in every individual event she entered from the World Championships in August through the China Masters, Asian Games, Denmark Open, French Open and Korea Open.
Winning 11 titles in one season is remarkable, but the clearest measure of An Se-young’s current dominance is that she has maintained a win rate above 98% while sustaining a lengthy winning streak.
A third Korea Open title and 11 straight wins over Yamaguchi
With this victory, An Se-young claimed her third Korea Open women’s singles title, following wins in 2022 and 2023. She became the first South Korean player in 30 years to achieve the feat, since Bang Soo-hyun.
She has also won 11 straight matches against Yamaguchi since losing to her in last year’s Korea Open final, extending her career head-to-head lead to 25 wins and 15 losses.
The streak against the world No. 2, a rival she has faced repeatedly at major international tournaments, underscores An Se-young’s recent form at the top of women’s singles.
World Tour Finals offer a shot at a record 12th title in one season
An Se-young’s next goal is to become the sole holder of the record for the most titles in a single season, rather than sharing it.
If she wins the BWF World Tour Finals, to be held in Hangzhou, China, from December 9 to 13, An Se-young will become the first player in either men’s or women’s singles to win 12 titles in a single season.
With 11 titles in both 2025 and 2026, she has already made badminton history. The final tournament of this season gives her a chance to surpass that mark.
