Yamaguchi dethrones Tai to become badminton world No 1

KUALA LUMPUR — Japanese badminton star Akane Yamaguchi overtook Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei to become the new World No 1 in women’s singles. Her move to the summit of the world rankings follows consecutive victories in Indonesia and home soil, according to the latest world ranking released by Badminton World Federation here on Tuesday.

Tai had been the top women’s singles player almost continuously since December 2016, but she was overtaken by Yamaguchi, who won back to back champions in Indonesia and Japan. Yamaguchi’s teammate Nozomi Okuhara is ranked No 3 followed by China’s Chen Yufei.

Yamaguchi’s compatriot Kento Momota consolidated his world No 1 position in men’s singles after the victory in Japan. China’s Shi Yuqi and Chen Long rank No 2 and No 4 respectively. Two-time Olympic gold medalist Lin Dan ranks No 14.

Japanese badminton players also dominate in women’s doubles as they take all top 3 positions. Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara overtook their compatriots Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota to become the new top-ranked pair in the world.

Indonesian pair Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo rank No 1 in men’s doubles followed by Chinese pair Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen.

China’s Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong continued their reign in mixed doubles. Their teammates Wang Yilyu and Huang Dongping rank No 2 after winning the Japan Open.