Chirag-Satwiksairaj Break Saina Nehwal’s BWF No. 1 Ranking Record

New Delhi

The record for the most weeks spent at number one in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) world ranking by an Indian has been surpassed by the top-ranked Indian men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty. They have held the top position for 10 weeks, surpassing the previous record held by Saina Nehwal. Nehwal held the top spot for nine weeks from August 18, 2015, to October 21, 2015.

Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy clinched the top ranking after their performances in various tournaments this year, including reaching the finals of the China Open, Malaysia Open, and India Open. They further solidified their position with a victory at the French Open.

The ranking system considers a player's or pair's performance in the ten highest-scoring events over the past 52 weeks. Currently, Chirag and Satwik have accumulated 1,02,303 points, maintaining a lead of over 5,000 points ahead of the second-ranked South Korean pair of Kang Min Hyuk and Seo Seung Jae.

Last year, following their triumph at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy became the first Indian doubles pair to reach the top of the BWF Rankings. However, their reign lasted only three weeks.