At Yonex Denmark Open, the women's singles category is packed to the max with top players. Tine Baun is the only Dane who enters directly in the main tournament.
There is now less than three weeks to go before Yonex Denmark Open 2012 will take place in Odense Sports Park. The seeding takes place today, and the draw will be made on the second of October, but already now it is clear who is playing in the various categories at the Super Series Premier tournament.
During the next days, Badminton Denmark give you an overview of the players who are playing in the various categories. Today is about the women's singles category, where China in particular seems to flex their muscles. Thus feature four of their five Top10 players in the program.
No title defense
Ironically, the only missing Chinese top player is the woman who won the tournament last year, Wang Xin. Last year she beatWang Yihan in the final, but will this year not have the chance to regain her title. In contrast, Wang Yihan, who currently sits heavily on the world rankings' first place, has every opportunity to take the final step up to the top of the podium this year.
But other players have those opportunities as well. Among other, the world rankings No. 2, Li Xuerui, who won the Olympics by beating no other than Wang Yihan back in August. Also world rankings' No. 5 and No. 9, Wang Shixian and Jiang Yanjiao, will be present in Odense to fight for the title.
However, it is not only China who can bid in on it. Also Indian Saina Nehwal, German Juliane Schenk, Korean Ji Hyun Sung and Thai Ratchanok Inthanon represent the world's Top10 at the tournament, so everybody will have to put up a fight if they want the gold medal and the biggest check.
Advantage of own turf?
And then there is Tine Baun. The world currently seventh best women's singles certainly also has the chance to go all the way at the tournament, where she has the advantage of playing at home. She has won the tournament once, back in 2009, and reached the semifinals in both 2008 and 2006.
Although Tine Baun is the only Danish women's singles player who goes straight into the main tournament, it is far from certain that she ends up being the only in it. Denmark has several women's singles in the qualifying tournament.
Those players are Karina Jørgensen, Line Kjær Feldt, Lene Clausen and Sandra-Maria Jensen. Mette Poulsen, Louise Hansen, Anna Thea Madsen, Camilla Martens, Julie Finne-Ipsen, Natalia Koch Rhode, Julie Davidson and Cecilie Sentow are on the reserves list.
The Danish talent mass will unfold on Tuesday 16th October, when the qualification tournament takes place. There will be no entrance fee for this day of the tournament.