China’s Shi Yuqi and World No.1 An Se Young began the season by capturing the men’s and women’s singles titles respectively at the Malaysia Open Badminton 2025 at Axiata Arena on Sunday.
The World No.1 men’s player avenged his defeat against his World No.2 Anders Antonsen 21-8, 21-15 after having lost in straight games at the 2024 edition. It turned out to be a lopsided Super 1000 final contest with the Chinese capturing the crown in 39 minutes.
He immediately went to his coaches to celebrate the victory.
“I’m definitely happy because it has been a while since a Chinese men’s singles shuttler won a title in Malaysia. Last year when I played against him, he was in excellent form, so today I reflected on my past encounters with him and I made sure to prepare thoroughly,” said Shi.
The South Korea women’s player, meanwhile, triumphed in convincing fashion, defeating Wang Zhi Yi 21-17 21-7 in just 45 minutes.
The victory was particularly sweet for An, as it ended a recent losing streak to the Chinese shuttler who had bested her in their last two encounters.
In securing a second consecutive Malaysia Open crown, An became the first Korean women’s singles shuttler to win back-to-back editions of the 88-year-old tournament.
“I just found out about this. I’m very happy,” said the 22-year-old. “Starting the new year with a win feels refreshing.”
An admitted she was determined to halt her run against Wang but was careful not to let it cloud her preparations.
“I learned a lot from those losses,” she said. “The key was to quickly forget about them and take away the lessons. It’s important not to dwell on the past. I just wanted to play with full confidence and enjoy the match.”
Just last month, An lost to Wang in the semifinals of the BWF World Tour Finals. However, her dominant run in Kuala Lumpur – where she didn’t drop a game on her way to the title – could be an indicator of what’s to come this season.