SINGAPORE - With top-ranked men's doubles pair Marcus Gideon and Kevin Sukamuljo confirming their participation in the Singapore Badminton Open, the April 9-14 tournament will see the world No. 1 players of all five events competing at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Organisers announced on Wednesday (Feb 27) that the pair, the Asian Games champions, are part of a 50-strong contingent from Indonesia who will be in town. The contingent includes men's singles world No. 7 Anthony Ginting and No. 9 Jonatan Christie, also an Asian Games champion.
Viktor Axelsen, the men's singles world No. 6, will also compete at the tournament.
The other top-ranked players are Kento Momota of Japan (men's singles), Tai Tzu-ying of Chinese Taipei (women's singles), Japanese pair Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota (women's doubles) and Chinese duo Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong (mixed doubles).
The Singapore Open's star-studded field will also feature China's top male shuttlers Lin Dan and Chen Long.
Singapore's representatives include Yeo Jia Min in the women's singles and Loh Kean Yew in the men's singles.
Loh, who upset two-time Olympic champion Lin to win the Thailand Masters in January, said: "As a player an fan of the sport, I'm excited that so many big names are going to be competing at the Singapore Open. This is going to be a huge test for myself and I hope to capitalise on the home support to push me to achieve great results and do Singapore proud."