Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min wins German Open to end badminton title drought

Yeo Jia Min, seen here at the Paris 2024 Olympics, won her German Open women's singles final against Vietnam's Nguyen Thuy Linh on March 2. ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

SINGAPORE – Ending a 66-month title drought on the Badminton World Federation World Tour, Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min claimed the biggest title of her career when she beat Vietnam’s Nguyen Thuy Linh 21-16, 21-17 in the women’s singles final of the Super 300 German Open on March 2.

The world No. 13 took 41 minutes to secure her fourth consecutive victory over her 29th-ranked opponent in their fifth meeting and pocketed the winner’s cheque of US$18,000 (S$24,300).

This was the 26-year-old’s first final on the World Tour since losing the Super 500 Hylo Open final in 2021 to Thailand’s Busanan Ongbamrungphan, third title on the World Tour and fifth international title of her career.

She won her previous World Tour title at the Super 100 Hyderabad Open in August 2019 and also bagged the lower-tier Polish Open title in 2023.

Yeo, who reached the quarter-finals of the Super 1000 Malaysia Open and Super 750 India Open in January, had been in fine form at the Westenergie Sporthalle in Mulheim this past week.

The former junior world No. 1 beat Taiwanese Huang Yu-hsun (58th), Japanese Hina Akechi (45th) and Danes Amalie Schulz (61st) and Mia Blichfeldt (23rd) before her triumph over Thuy Linh.

Compatriot Loh Kean Yew is also in the men’s singles final where the world No. 15 will take on Denmark’s world No. 4 and two-time Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen.

The US$240,000 German Open is the opening competition of the season’s first European swing, and the Singaporean players will move on to the March 4-9 Super 300 Orleans Masters in France before the March 11-16 All England Open, a Super 1000 event.

Full report to follow.

David Lee is senior sports correspondent at The Straits Times focusing on aquatics, badminton, basketball, cue sports, football and table tennis.

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