BWF Rankings: Three Indian male shuttlers enter top 15 of world rankings for the second time, Saina-Sindhu retain their spots

It is a memorable day for Indian badminton as three male shuttlers have entered the top 15 of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) men’s singles world rankings for the second time. There has been steady progress made by the male players in recent times and these new rankings are an indicator of how far they have come.

The 13^th, 14^th and 15^th places on the charts have all been occupied by Indians, which makes for some pretty viewing. Ajay Jayaram maintains his earlier place on the list, staying at number 13 in the world.

Climbing up a notch is Kidambi Srikanth, who is now ranked at number 14. The 24-year-old has a career-high ranking of number four but he had dropped to as low as 31 in March earlier this year.

Making the biggest jump after an 11-match unbeaten streak that includes two trophies is Sai Praneeth, who now stands at 15^th place after jumping nine places. The Singapore Open Super Series and Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold champion has made rapid strides in the last few weeks and on form, he is the best male shuttler in the country as of now.

Falling behind two places is India Open Super Series semifinalist Sameer Verma, who is now in 28^th place. One rank behind him is another Indian player in the form of HS Prannoy, who has climbed up one spot from number 30.

Over on the women’s side, there has been no movement for either of the two Olympic medalists – Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu. The silver medalist from last year’s Games, Sindhu, remains at number three in the world while Saina stays at 11^th place on the charts. Climbing up significantly is youngster Ruthvika Shivani Gadde, who has made a leap of 11 places to reach number 74.

In the doubles section, Ashwini Ponappa and Reddy N. Sikki remain the top-ranked Indians on the list, maintaining their 28^th spot in the women’s category. Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy fall three places to number 29 in the world. The mixed doubles pairing of Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Reddy N. Sikki is ranked at 15^th place, moving up one place on the table.

The movement in the rankings showcases the progress made by the shuttlers over this period. Here’s hoping that under the new leadership, our shuttlers perform even better and bring more laurels to the country!