SINGAPORE - The Republic's top male shuttler Loh Kean Yew is looking forward to producing more giant-killing acts when the Singapore Badminton Open swings by the Singapore Indoor Stadium from April 7-12.

Last year, Loh took out Chinese legend Lin Dan in the Thailand Masters final. His compatriot, Yeo Jia Min, also shone on the world stage, beating Japan's former world No. 1 Akane Yamaguchi in the second round of the World Championships.

Both are expected to feature in this year's tournament, and Loh, who also reached the SEA Games final said: "I've come a long way since last year's Singapore Badminton Open.

"Having had a good run in 2019, I'm hoping to take a bigger step this year, starting with the Singapore Badminton Open, especially with home ground advantage.

"Seeing as the tournament always draws world-class players, it will provide us (local players) with great exposure. It's on us to fight and do well and I'm looking forward to the challenge ahead."

Organised by the Singapore Badminton Association, the Singapore Badminton Open is part of the HSBC BWF World Tour and is a Super 500 (Level 4) event.

With the US$408,000 (S$551,000) Singapore Badminton Open being the last stop in the qualifying window for this year's Olympics, the world's best players look set to return to challenge for points and a ticket to Tokyo 2020.

Over the years, the tournament has welcomed numerous world and Olympic champions, including men's and women's singles world No. 1 Kento Momota and Tai Tzu-ying, who won in Singapore last year.

Other top shuttlers who have played at the event include reigning Olympic men's and women's singles champions Chen Long and Carolina Marin.

Early bird tickets for the Singapore Badminton Open are on sale from Jan 11 till Feb 16 and are available through APACTix. For more information, visit http://www.singaporebadmintonopen.com.sg/