China’s Wang Zhiyi defeated South Korea’s An Se-young in straight games to win the women’s singles crown at the 2026 All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham yesterday, snapping the world no. 1’s 36-match winning streak.
The world no. 2 secured a 21-15, 21-19 victory in 59 minutes at the Utilita Arena to claim her first All England title and her first women’s singles title of the season.
Wang’s win marked a significant turnaround in her rivalry with the reigning Olympic champion. The Chinese shuttler had entered the final on a 10-match losing streak against An and had also been defeated by the South Korean in the 2025 All England final.
“The key to today’s victory was my mindset against my opponent,” Wang said after the match. “In previous matches, I couldn’t sustain rallies for that long, but today I managed to do it, and my opponent made some mistakes.”
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In the men’s singles final, Lin Chun-yi of Chinese Taipei defeated India’s Lakshya Sen 21-15, 22-20 to capture his first BWF World Tour Super 1000 title. The victory also extended Lin’s winning streak against Sen to five matches.
Top seeds also claimed both doubles titles at the tournament. China’s Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning defeated South Korea’s Baek Ha-na and Lee So-hee 21-18, 21-12 to win the women’s doubles crown, completing a career sweep of all BWF Super 1000 tournaments.
South Korea’s Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae successfully defended their men’s doubles title with an 18-21, 21-12, 21-19 victory over Malaysia’s Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik.
Meanwhile, Ye Hong-wei and Nicole Gonzales Chan of Chinese Taipei won the mixed doubles title after beating France’s Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue 21-19, 21-18.
The All England Open, one of badminton’s most prestigious tournaments and part of the BWF World Tour Super 1000 circuit, was held at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.
