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Singapore Badminton Open will feature world No. 1s in all events

World No. 1 men’s doubles shuttlers Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo (left) and Marcus Fernaldi Gideon have confirmed their participation for the Singapore Badminton Open from 9-14 April. (PHOTO: Singapore Badminton Association)
World No. 1 men’s doubles shuttlers Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo (left) and Marcus Fernaldi Gideon have confirmed their participation for the Singapore Badminton Open from 9-14 April. (PHOTO: Singapore Badminton Association)

This year’s Singapore Badminton Open is set to feature world No. 1s in all five events – the men’s and women’s singles, men’s and women’s doubles and the mixed doubles.

Organisers announced on Wednesday (27 February) that, when registration closed on Tuesday, the latest entries for the 9-14 April tournament at the Singapore Indoor Stadium included the top-ranked men’s doubles pair, Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo of Indonesia.

The duo are the reigning Asian Games champions and are part of a 50-strong Indonesian contingent which includes men’s singles world No. 7 Anthony Ginting and No. 9 Jonatan Christie, also an Asian Games champion.

Danish contingent to feature top men’s singles players

Denmark also submitted its registration on deadline day, and will see men’s singles world No. 6 Viktor Axelsen, former European champion Jan O Jorgensen and up-and-coming star Anders Antonsen taking part.

Antonsen recently stunned men’s singles world No. 1 Kento Momota of Japan to win January’s Indonesia Masters.

Japanese shuttler Kento Momota reached the world No. 1 spot in September 2018. (PHOTO: Singapore Badminton Association)
Japanese shuttler Kento Momota reached the world No. 1 spot in September 2018. (PHOTO: Singapore Badminton Association)

Momota is also part of what is shaping up to be a strong men’s singles field, which will also feature two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan, 2016 Olympic gold medallist Chen Long and Taiwan’s defending champion Chou Tien-chen.

Nine of the current top 10 men’s singles shuttlers will be participating at the Open.

Besides Gideon/Sukamuljo and Momota, the other world No. 1s taking part are Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying (women’s singles), Japan’s Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota (women’s doubles) and China’s Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong (mixed doubles).

Taiwanese shuttler Tai Tzu-ying is the reigning Asian Games women’s singles gold medallist. (PHOTO: Singapore Badminton Association)
Taiwanese shuttler Tai Tzu-ying is the reigning Asian Games women’s singles gold medallist. (PHOTO: Singapore Badminton Association)

Loh Kean Yew, Yeo Jia Min to fly Singapore colours

Singapore will also have its top shuttlers Loh Kean Yew (men’s singles) and Yeo Jia Min (women’s singles) at the Open. Both were winners in the Singapore National Open Championships earlier this month, while Loh stunned Lin to clinch the Thailand Masters in January.

Said Loh, “As a player and a fan of the sport, I’m excited that so many big names are going to be competing at the Singapore Open. This is going to be a huge test for myself and I hope to capitalise on the home support to push me to achieve great results and do Singapore proud.”

Tickets for the Open are available via Sports Hub Tix and APAC Tix. Early-bird ticket sales end on 28 February.

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