Top five Indian badminton players with most BWF 1000 titles

Prakash Padukone won India’s first BWF 1000 title at the All England Open.

The BWF World Tour Super 1000 tournaments stand as badminton‘s top-tier tournaments, with prize money reaching millions and attracting much attention, just like the Grand Slams of tennis. Four Super 1000 tournaments happen each year – All England Open, China Open, Indonesia Open and Malaysia Open – winning at this level is difficult even for elite players.

As far as India is concerned, an epic turnaround began with Prakash Padukone’s remarkable win at the All England in 1980, and it continues today with Satwik-Chirag’s respective wins at the Indonesian Open in 2023.

Also Read: Top five fastest smashes in women’s badminton history

In this article, we will look at the top five Indian badminton players with the most BWF 1000 titles:

Note: No Indian has won the Malaysia Open*

5. PV Sindhu (1)

PV Sindhu starts our list with her Super 1000 win at the 2016 China Open after her silver medal at the Rio Olympics. The player from Hyderabad beat Sun Yu 21-11, 17-21 21-11 in Fuzhou relying on her strong baseline play.

To get there, he defeated some top players, including He Bing Xiao. Sindhu also made the final of the 2019 Indonesia Open, where she finished runner-up, adding to her tally of five World Championship medals and two Olympic successes.

4. Prakash Padukone (1)

Prakash Padukone has been a beacon of Indian badminton with his 1980 All England win marking a turning point for Indian badminton. He beat world champion Liem Swie King 15-3, 15-10. Followed up with, All England finals appearance in 1981, losing to King in three games

Padukone trained in Denmark with Morten Frost and developed an artistic style that focused on tricking opponents rather than overpowering them changing Indian badminton forever.

Also Read: Top five junior Indian badminton players to watch out for

3. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/ Chirag Shetty (1)

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty are third on our list thanks to their victory at the 2023 Indonesia Open where they defeated Olympic medalists Chia/Soh 21-17, 21-18. The duo followed their Indonesia Open success with imperious touch at the 2023 Asian Games, where they marched their way through four top-three ranked pairs, winning the gold.

Their performance at the 2024 Malaysia Open final is an example of their late consistency in performing and winning in the Super 1000 tournaments

2. Srikanth Kidambi (2)

Srikanth Kidambi takes the second spot with two wins. He stunned Lin Dan (21-19 21-17) to win the 2014 China Open. He then beat Kazumasa Sakai to grab the 2017 Indonesia Open title. Srikanth became the first Indian man to win multiple Super 1000 events. His aggressive play won praise from greats like Morten Frost.

Also Read: Top five badminton tournaments with highest prize money ft. Malaysia Open

1. Saina Nehwal (4)

Saina Nehwal tops the list with four Super 1000 wins showing her power at the Indonesia Open (2009, 2010, 2012). She also won the 2014 China Open beating several Chinese players. Nehwal set new records in women’s singles, including a 12-week stint as World No. 1 in 2015.

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