An Se-young beats PV Sindhu to claim French Open title

An Se-young came from behind to beat PV Sindhu 16-21, 21-11, 21-12 in the French Open women’s singles final on Sunday, extending her unbeaten head-to-head record against the Indian to 11-0.

Sindhu took the opening game from the world No. 1 and reigning world champion, but An recovered to win her tenth individual title of the season. The result leaves An with a 66-1 record in 2026; her only defeat came against Wang Zhi Yi in the All England Open final.

Sindhu starts strongly before An takes control

The first game was level at 11-11 when Sindhu won four consecutive points to move ahead. Her improved play at the net helped her close out the game and take the lead in the match.

An responded in the second game. The players were tied at 7-7, but the South Korean pulled clear and won it 21-11 to force a decider.

Sindhu made another promising start in the third game, opening an 8-5 lead. An then turned the contest in her favour, wearing down her opponent before sealing the title with a 21-12 win in the final game.

Taking the opener was itself an uncommon achievement for Sindhu in this match-up: she had taken a game off An only once before. An has conceded just 11 games across all competitions this year, while maintaining her perfect match record against Sindhu.

Final adds to Sindhu’s Super 750 season

The French Open was Sindhu’s second Super 750 final of the year. Her first came at the Japan Open in July, where she won the title, but she could not repeat that result after An’s comeback on Sunday.

Sindhu had reached the final by beating Japan’s Hina Akechi 21-10, 20-22, 21-16 in a 73-minute semifinal. It was their first meeting on the BWF Tour, and Akechi pushed the two-time Olympic medallist to a deciding game.

An’s semifinal was shorter: she defeated Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara 21-12, 21-19 in 45 minutes. That victory put her in the French Open final for a third consecutive edition.

The final adds another title to An’s season and another win over Sindhu. For Sindhu, it ends a second Super 750 final appearance of 2026 without the title she had secured at the Japan Open.