The prettiest badminton stars

Yes, yes, we know you’d like to see Saina Nehwal, Ashwini Ponnappa or Jwala Gutta up first, but here are a few names you probably haven’t heard before.

Reiko Shiota

Reiko Shiota (Japan, mixed doubles)Japanese doubles player, who is a superstar in the badminton-playing world for her looks. Thanks to her, women’s doubles acquired a great fan following (she used to partner Kumiko Ogura, but now plays with the lucky Shintaro Ikeda). And it isn’t as if she’s a star merely for her looks — she’s an accomplished player too, and is ranked no.8 in the mixed.

Lilyana Natsir

Lilyana Natsir (Indonesia, mixed doubles)A brilliant forecourt player, established a formidable combination with Nova Widianto in the mixed doubles, winning two world championships. After Nova’s retirement, she has teamed up with Tontowi Ahmad, and the pair has had some success, thanks mainly to Lilyana. Off court, she is friendly and courteous.

Ma Jin (China, mixed doubles)

Ma Jin

When Gao Ling, the legendary Chinese doubles player, retired, most observers believed she could not be replaced, for Gao frequently smiled on court even when the going got tough. However, shortly after her retirement, the Chinese found another gem — Ma Jin, who resembles Gao in many ways, including her friendly disposition and ability to smile even at tense moments.

Christinna Pedersen and Joachim Fischer

Christinna Pedersen (Denmark, doubles)Typical Danish looks — tall and blonde. She’s in the form of her life. Pairing the left-hander Joachim Fischer, the pair have consistently beaten the world’s best teams, winning back-to-back Superseries titles at Denmark and France, and finishing runners-up at Hong Kong and China. Off-court, Christinna is soft-spoken and friendly.

Porntip Buranaprasertsuk (Thailand, singles)

Porntip

The Thai might have a tongue-twister of a name, but plays a stylish, deceptive game which helped her win the India Open Superseries last year. While she might not be able to challenge the top Chinese just yet, she does manage to pose a problem to the world’s best.

Carolina Marin

Carolina Marin (Spain, singles)Spain’s contribution to badminton is almost negligible, but of late the country has produced a couple of players who compete in the world circuit. Carolina Marin, ranked No.26, reached the final of the Irish International recently. She’s unlikely to crack the top-15, but as a representative of Spain, she can become an ambassador of the sport in her country.