New Delhi, Mar 11: Indian badminton biggest names—Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty and Lakshya Sen--suffered a significant blow, falling out of the top 10 in their respective categories in the latest world rankings released by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Tuesday.

Former world No.1 men's doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have dropped five places in the rankings to 12th. The duo, who were ranked seventh last week, last competed at the Badminton Asia Team Mixed Championships in February.

This marks the first time since November 2021 that the pair has fallen outside the top 10, reflecting a turbulent period in their career following their underwhelming performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Since their Olympic exit, Rankireddy and Shetty have undergone a series of changes in their training setup, including parting ways with their long-time coach, Mathias Boe. They are now being mentored by Tan Kim Her, the coach credited with forming their partnership in their early days. Despite the setback, they remain India's highest-ranked men's doubles pair.

In the men’s singles, Lakshya Sen has also suffered a ranking decline. The former world No. 10 has slipped five places to 15th in the latest standings. Much like Rankireddy and Shetty, Sen last competed at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships and has struggled for form in 2025.

His early exits at the Malaysia Open and India Open have contributed to his slide in the rankings. His best performance so far this year has been reaching the Round of 16 at the Indonesia Masters Super 500 event.

In women’s singles, PV Sindhu, India’s double Olympic medallist, has also seen a dip in her ranking. She has slipped to the 16th position from 15th last week. Despite the setback, Sindhu remains the only Indian in the top 20 of the women’s singles rankings.

While most Indian shuttlers struggled in the rankings, there were a few bright spots. The women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand continues to hold firm in the top 10, occupying the ninth spot in the world rankings. The duo remains India's best bet in women’s doubles and will look to build on their steady performances.

Meanwhile, in mixed doubles, the pairing of Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila achieved a career-high ranking of 19th. Crasto’s feat is particularly noteworthy as she has now broken into the Top 20 of the world rankings with three different partners. Previously, she had achieved this distinction with Ashwini Ponnappa in the women’s doubles and Ishaan Bhatnagar in mixed doubles.

Among the young talents making a mark, Ayush Shetty had a breakthrough week, climbing to a career-best ranking of 43rd in men’s singles after his impressive semi-final run at the Orleans Masters.

The young shuttler has moved up five places and is now the fifth-highest-ranked Indian in men’s singles, trailing behind Lakshya Sen, HS Prannoy, Priyanshu Rajawat, and Kiran George.

(IANS)

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