Kunlavut became the first Thai player to become the world's No. 1 player, setting a new history in the country's badminton world

Thai badminton star Kunlavut officially became the first men's singles player to reach the world's No. 1 on the 3rd, setting a new history in the country's badminton world. Kunlavut won the Singapore Super 750 men's singles title last week, with Singapore winning his fourth title of the season.

Thailand's Kunlavut officially topped the world No. 1 for the first time, becoming the first Thai men's singles player to become the world's No. 1 player

"I'm very proud to be ranked No. 1 in the world, but I'm going to continue to improve my form ahead of the World Badminton Championships in Paris. But now against world-class players, I don't have any pressure. Kunlavut, who has now scored 97,179 points, has surpassed Chinese men's singles star Shi Yuqi (95,117 points), who defended his title in the Singapore Super 750 tournament.

Born in Chonburi province, Kunlavut has had a record-breaking career: he dominated the World Junior Championships three times as a teenager, became Thailand's first men's singles world champion in 2023 and won silver at the Paris Olympics last year. This season, he has won the Indonesia Masters, Asian Championships, Thailand Open and Singapore Open, bringing his career tally to seven.

Shi Yuqi fell one spot to No. 2, while Denmark's Antonsen, China's Li Shifeng and Indonesia's Jonathan remained between No. 3 and No. 5, while Japan's Kodai Naraoka and France's Lanier edged up one notch to No. 6 and No. 8 respectively. Denmark's Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen edged down one spot to No. 9, while Singapore's former world champion Loh Kian Yew remained at No. 10. Malaysia's Lee Zi Kah dropped two notches to 15th, Leong Jun Ho remained at 25th and Ho Sow Wee jumped two notches to 43rd.

An Xiying is still firmly ranked as the world's first sister. In the Women's Singles rankings, South Korea's Olympic champion Ahn Se-young's winning streak was ended by China's Chen Yufei in Singapore last week, but she still sits firmly on the throne of the first sister, and Chen Yufei remains fifth.