The top 10 players in the women doubles category in badminton is dominated by Asian countries. Letโs look into the current best womenโs doubles badminton players
In recent years in the womenโs doubles category; the title of world No.1 has been like a tug of war between the current top 3. The following list is made with help of updated rankings released by the BWF World Rankings on 29 June 2021.
Top 10 women doubles badminton players in the world right now
1. Yuki Fukushima/Sayaka Hirota (Japan)
The pair from Japan is the current world No.1 in the women’s doubles category. They have a career record of 226 wins, 69 losses. The duo claimed the top spot for the first time on 21 June 2018 and since then they have moved up and down the ladder.
At the BWF World Championships, they have won three consecutive silver medals โ from 2017 to 2019. The pair was the 2018 Asian Champions as they defeated their seniors Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi by the score of 21โ18, 18โ21, 21โ15 in the final. They lost their semifinal match at the 2018 Asian Games to the eventual gold medalist pair from China and they had to settle with a bronze medal.
They were awarded the โMost Improved Player of the Yearโ by BWF in 2017. In 2020, for the first time, they were crowned champions at the prestigious All England Open tournament. Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota have won 11 BWF World Tour titles, 1 BWF Superseries title, 4 BWF Grand Prix titles, and 1 BWF International Challenge/Series title.
2. Mayu Matsumoto/Wakana Nagahara (Japan)
The current world No.2 pair has a career record of 163 wins, 61 losses. Their highest ever ranking was world No.1 which they had achieved on 30 April 2019.
They are two-time world champions, achieving this feat in 2018 and 2019 respectively against the same opponents – Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota. At the 2019 Asian Championships, the pair ended up being the silver medalist as they lost the final to Chinaโs Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan. The pair was runners-up at the 2019 BWF World Tour Finals, reaching the final of the annual year-end tournament for the first time.
BWF awarded them the โMost Improved Player of the Yearโ in 2018. In 2021, they were champions at the All England Open as they won the final against their compatriots, in two games, the score was 21โ18, 21โ16. Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara have won 4 World Tour titles, 1 Grand Prix title, and 1 International Challenge/Series title.
3. Chen Qingchen/Jia Yifan (China)
The pair has a career record of 214 wins, 62 losses and currently holds 3rd place in womenโs doubles rankings. They achieved their highest ranking โ rank 1 on 2 November 2017. Overall they have spent 55 weeks being world No. 1.
Their achievements include being the 2017 world champions in the womenโs doubles event, 2018 Asian Games gold medalists. They were crowned the All England Open champions for the very first time in 2019; in the final, they defeated Japanโs Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara despite losing the first game โ but they won the following two games to ensure victory. After this triumph, they claimed the title of Asian champions by winning the gold medal in the 2019 Asian Championships.
They have won two annual year-end tournaments, the 2016 BWF Superseries Finals, and the 2019 BWF World Tour Finals. Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan have won 6 World Tour titles, 5 Superseries titles, 6 Grand Prix titles, and 2 International Challenge/Series titles.
4. Lee So-hee/Shin Seung-chan (South Korea)
The pair from South Korea is currently ranked 4th in the world, they have a career record of 199 wins, 93 losses. As a pair 4th ranked is their highest ranking ever.
At the 2014 BWF World Championships, the duo won a bronze medal as they lost their semifinal match against the eventual gold medalist pair from China with a score of 13โ21, 10โ21. In the 2020 edition of the BWF World Tour Finals, they won the final by defeating their compatriots Kim So-yeong and Kong Hee-yong in three games.
So far Lee So-hee and Shin Seung-chan have won 3 World Tour titles, 1 Superseries title, 3 Grand Prix titles, and 2 International Challenge/Series titles.
5. Kim So-yeong/Kong Hee-yong (South Korea)
The 5th ranked pair in the world has a career record of 91 wins, 35 losses. Their highest ever ranking was 4th rank which they had achieved on 14 January 2020.
They have won a bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Championships, as the duo lost the semifinal match to the Japanese pair of Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi. Won their first-ever Super 1000 event, by claiming victory at the 2020 Toyota Thailand Open where they defeated their compatriots with a score of 21โ18, 21โ19.
In 2019 they reached 7 finals of the BWF World Tour tournaments. The duo has been awarded the 2019 โMost Improved Player of the Yearโ by BWF at the Gala Awards Night 2019. Kim So-yeong and Kong Hee-yong have won 5 World Tour titles.
Also Read: Top 10 Menโs Doubles Badminton Players In The World
6. Greysia Polii/Apriyani Rahayu (Indonesia)
The current 6th ranked pair in the world has a career record of 125 wins, 52 losses. The rank 3rd was the pair’s highest-ever ranking which they had obtained on 20 September 2018.
Their partnership was formed in 2017. At the BWF World Championships, they won two bronze medals in 2018 and 2019 respectively, as they lost both semifinals to the same opponents Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara. In the 2018 Asian Games, they lost the semifinal match and had to settle with a bronze medal. This pair has won the gold medal at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.
Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu have won 6 World Tour titles, 1 Superseries title, and 1 Grand Prix title to be included in the top ten of the best women doubles badminton players.
7. Du Yue/Li Yinhui (China)
The current world No. 7 duos has a career record of 90 wins, 47 losses. Their highest ever ranking was rank 5th as of 17 March 2020 to see them be in the top women badminton players.
They havenโt won any major tournaments, but some of their achievements include claiming a bronze medal at the 2019 BWF World Championships, as they lost their semifinal match against Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota. The pair was runners-up at the prestigious All England Open tournament in 2020. Du Yue and Li Yinhui have won 3 World Tour titles.
8. Jongkolphan Kititharakul/Rawinda Prajongjai (Thailand)
The Thai pair is currently ranked 8th globally and has a career record of 178 wins, 126 losses.
Until now, one of their achievements includes winning the gold medal at the 2017 Southeast Asian Games held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Jongkolphan Kititharakul and Rawinda Prajongjai have won 3 World Tour titles, 3 Grand Prix titles, and 2 International Challenge/Series titles.
9. Chang Ye-na/Kim Hye-rin (South Korea)
The current world No.9 from South Korea has a career record of 45 wins, 22 losses.
They havenโt won any tournaments yet but have finished as runners-up at three BWF World Tour tournaments, which are the 2019 Canada Open, 2019 Hong Kong Open, and the 2019 Syed Modi International.
10. Nami Matsuyama/Chiharu Shida (Japan)
The Japanese pair of Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida is currently ranked 10th in the womenโs doubles category in the world. They have a career record of 94 wins, 36 losses. Their highest ever ranking was rank 9th which they achieved on 18 February 2020.
They claimed their first-ever BWF World Tour title by winning the 2018 Chinese Taipei Open where they defeated their compatriots Ayane Kurihara and Naru Shinoya with a score of 21โ10, 21โ17. Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida have won 3 World Tour titles and 1 International Challenge/Series title.