Four-Midable Chen, Kunlavut

Singles champions embrace pressure to claim fourth titles of the year

- Kimberly Kwek

After a disappointing Olympic campaign in August 2024 when she suffered a shock quarter-final exit, China's Chen Yufei found herself re-evaluating her career.

Unsure about her future, she took a hiatus, during which she completed a 10-week English course in Melbourne, Australia.

However, the time away only solidified her passion for badminton and she returned to competition in February, contributing to China's win at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships.

The 27-year-old has quickly regained her form and showed her class on the court, claiming four individual titles in a row.

Her latest came on June 1 at the US$1 million (S$1.29 million) KFF Singapore Open as she defeated compatriot Wang Zhiyi 21-11, 21-11 to capture her first crown here.

On how her game has benefited from last year's break, the 2024 runner-up said: "It mainly helped me relax more and deal with pressure better. It was like starting over, especially with my ranking continuously dropping, everything signaled a fresh beginning."

It was that mindset that helped Chen, who has risen from world No. 11 to No. 5 since her return and extended her unbeaten streak to 20 matches, a run dating back to the Swiss Open in March.