Reigning Olympic badminton champion An Seyoung defeated world champion Yamaguchi Akane 23-21, 21-12 to successfully defend her women’s singles title at the BWF Indonesia Open 2026 in Jakarta on Sunday (7 June).
After digging deep in the semi-finals against World No. 4 Chen Yufei, An faced a tricky start against Yamaguchi in a tight opening game.
But the 24-year-old World No. 1 from the Republic of Korea was unstoppable in the second game, taking victory in 39 minutes to clinch her ninth BWF World Tour Super 1000.
“This means a lot. I don’t know… I’m so happy that I’ve won so many,” An said, according to BWF.
“I had to forget yesterday’s play. Today’s a new day and I had to focus on today’s match.”
Unlike their previous encounter at last Sunday’s Singapore Open final, in which An suffered a mid-match wobble, the shuttler finished things off comfortably this time.
“I just focussed on one point at a time, and I didn’t follow the points (on the scoreboard) and that’s why I got a good result,” An said.
An now leads Yamaguchi 19 wins to 15 in their head-to-head record.
Gracious in defeat, Japan‘s Yamaguchi said An is improving with each match.
“If I can compare with our last match and now, she just got better – mentally, technically, everything was better. That’s why I couldn’t really do much,” Yamaguchi said.
Unseeded Victor Lai stuns home favourite Jonatan Christie
Canada’s rising star Victor Lai pulled off a major upset in the men’s final, beating local favourite and World No. 5 Jonatan Christie 21-19, 21-8 to win the men’s title.
Christie, the home hero of the badminton-crazy Southeast Asian nation, took the early lead in the opening game but the Lai, the 2025 World Championships bronze medallist, caught up slowly and took the opener.
The second game left viewers in awe of the 21-year-old’s talent as he took a 6-1 lead and outplayed Christie, becoming the first Canadian to win a Super 1000 title.
With his hands on his head in disbelief, Lai soaked in the moment before wrapping his country’s flag around his shoulders to celebrate the biggest title so far of his fledgling career.
“I never would have imagined I’d win a Super 1000 title, and it’s like I’m dreaming still,” Lai said post-match. “The past couple of nights I’ve been thinking about scenarios in my head, and I’m glad that one of them came true.”
Asked what his achievement meant for Canadian badminton, the youngster said: “I think it shows that you have got to believe. In Canada we might not have the support or the firepower as other countries, but if you believe, you can do it.”
Christie, who was also playing in his first final at home, said pressure got the better of him.
“I felt too much pressure. When I came here, the pressure kept building, and I couldn’t handle it on court,” the 28-year-old said.
“Going through to the final is not easy; it’s an achievement. I was nearly there, but I must learn from this for the next tournament.”
READ MORE: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/bwf-indonesia-open-2026-an-seyoung-yamaguchi-akane-victor-lai-jonatan-christie
