Kento Momota returns the ball during the men's singles final against Denmark's Viktor Axelsen at Malaysia Masters 2020 badminton tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Jan. 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Chong Voon Chung)
Japanese star shuttler Kento Momota stays on top of the BWF world rankings of men's singles despite missing the Thailand tournaments, while Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei leads the women's singles ranking.
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Badminton World Federation (BWF) released its latest world rankings on Tuesday following the two Super 1,000 Asia Opens and BWF World Tour Finals held in Thailand, with Japan's Kento Momota and Tai Tzu Ying from Chinese Taipei leading the men's and women's singles respectively.
Momota continues his reign despite missing the tournaments in Thailand after having tested positive for COVID-19. Viktor Axelsen from Denmark ranks second after winning the Super 1,000 Opens in Thailand.
Axelsen's quest for the third title in a row was derailed by his compatriot Anders Antonsen at the BWF World Tour Finals, who ranks third in the latest men's ranking.
China's Chen Long and Shi Yuqi rank sixth and 10th place respectively.
Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei competes during the women's singles final against Carolina Marin of Spain at the Thailand Open badminton tournament in Bangkok, Thailand on Jan. 24, 2021. (Badminton Association of Thailand/Handout via Xinhua)
Tai cemented her world No. 1 after beating Carolina Marin from Spain during the women's singles final at the BWF World Tour Finals. Marin rose to the third place with two Super 1,000 champions in Thailand. Chinese shuttler Chen Yufei remains at second place.
In the men's doubles, Indonesian pairs Marcus Fernaldi Gideon/Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo and Hendra Setiawan/Mohammad Ahsan remain at the top two positions. Lee Yang and Wang Chi Lin of Chinese Taipei overtook Chinese pair Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen to take third place after claiming the title during the BWF World Tour Finals.
In the women's doubles, Japanese pair Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota stay on top, followed by Chinese pair Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan.
Zheng Siwei (top)/Huang Yaqiong of China compete during the mixed doubles final against Wang Yilyu/Huang Dongping of China at Malaysia Masters 2020 badminton tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Jan. 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhu Wei)
The Chinese mixed doubles duo of Zheng Siwei/Huang Yaqiong remain in the first place, followed by Thailand's Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai who rose to second after winning the BWF World Tour Finals on their home court.
BWF froze the world rankings last year after global competition came to a halt due to COVID-19. With the ongoing pandemic and the risks of travel, China withdrew from the tournaments in Thailand. Japan also pulled out after the positive test result of Momota. ■
