Lee So-hee (29-Incheon International Airport) and Baek Ha-na (23-MG Saemaul Bank) are the new hope for the Korean badminton team in women’s doubles. The duo will take on China’s world No. 1 Chen Qingcheng and Ji Aifan for the title.
The women’s doubles quarterfinal match at the Singapore Open 2023 at the Indoor Stadium in Singapore on Tuesday. World No. 2 Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na earned a thrilling 2-1 (16-21, 21-18, 21-10) victory over fourth-ranked China’s Zhang Xuan and Zheng Yue to reach the final.
The Singapore Open is part of the Badminton World Federation’s (BWF) Super 750 Series, which has attracted some of the world’s top players.
Earlier in the women’s doubles quarterfinals, Chen Qingcheng and Zhi Aifan, ranked 24th, defeated compatriots Li Wenmei and Liu Shanshan 2-0 (21-18, 21-12) to reach the final.
Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na, who were formed in October last year, have previously won the German Open in March and the Malaysian Masters in May. This is their third title of the season.
The duo first met in the final of the Denmark Open (BWF Super 750 Series) in October last year, losing 0-2 (12-21, 15-21) to Chen Qingcheng and Ji Aifan. It will be interesting to see if they can make up ground this time.
In the women’s singles quarterfinals, world 메이저놀이터 No. 2 Ahn Se-young (21-Samsung Life) defeated No. 3 Tai Tzu-ying (Chinese Taipei) 2-0 (21-16, 21-14) to reach the final and move one step closer to her fifth title of the season.
Her final opponent will be Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, the world number one. Yamaguchi defeated No. 4 Chen Yufei (CHN) 2-1 (21-10, 18-21, 21-16) in the semifinals earlier in the day.
Ahn won back-to-back gold medals at the India Open and Indonesia Masters in January, followed by the Korea Open in March and the Thailand Open on April 4. Ahn has been in peak form this year, reaching the finals of all eight tournaments she has competed in.
In the mixed doubles quarterfinals, world No. 5 Kim Won-ho (24-Samsung Life) and Jung Na-eun (23-Hwasun Guncheong) fell short of the final after losing 0-2 (19-21, 9-21) to 13th-ranked Denmark’s Mathias Christiansen and Alexandra Boje.
The pair had caused a stir in the previous day’s quarterfinals with a 2-0 (21-19, 21-19) victory over No. 1 Zheng Shuwei-Huang Yaqiong of China, but were overcome by a stomach bug.
