Badminton-Vitidsarn, An off to winning starts in season finale

Dec 17 : Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn beat Jonatan Christie while South Korea's An Se-Young battled past Putri Kusuma Wardani on a contrasting opening day for the top-ranked players at the badminton World Tour Finals in Hangzhou on Wednesday.

Vitidsarn, the men's world number one, got off to a fast start and dominated the exchanges throughout his 21-10 21-14 group stage victory over Christie for his sixth win against the Indonesian player.

It was far less straightforward for the top-ranked women's player An, who overcame a dip in the second game of her Group A contest before earning a 21-16 8-21 21-8 win over Indonesia's Wardani at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center.

An, the 2024 Paris Olympics gold medallist and former world champion, is looking to win her first title in the season-ending championship that features the best eight players in the world.

Meanwhile, reigning women's world champion Akane Yamaguchi staved off the challenge of Japanese compatriot Tomoka Miyazaki for a 21-14 21-17 win while Pornpawee Chochuwong beat Ratchanok Intanon 21-18 14-21 21-10 in a battle between Thai players.

In a high-octane contest that ran for 78 minutes, France's Christo Popov earned a thrilling win 21-13 12-21 21-19 win over Denmark's Anders Antonsen to progress to the next round.

World number two Li Shi Feng will play her Chinese counterpart Shi Yu Qi, while Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien Chen will face off against Japan's Kodai Naraoka in the remaining singles' contests for the day.