Loh happy being in top 10 but aims 'to achieve more'

After breaking into the top 10 of the men's singles for the first time, world champion Loh Kean Yew is delighted but not content.

In the latest world rankings released yesterday, he rose three spots to ninth, thanks to points gained from being part of the Singapore team who claimed a bronze at the Badminton Asia Team Championships (BATC) last week.

His leap up the ladder is akin to being in a virtuous circle, for it will help him qualify automatically for bigger tournaments that will earn him more ranking points and prize money.

And if he climbs into the top eight and then the top four, at major events he will avoid those ranked above him until at least the quarter-finals and semi-finals respectively.

It sets him up nicely for deeper runs at the Badminton World Federation World Tour's European swing, where he will play in the March 8-13 German Open (Super 300), March 16-20 All England Open (Super 1000) and March 22-27 Swiss Open (Super 300).

Loh told The Straits Times: "It feels great to reach the top 10 as it's always been one of my goals. But I don't want to stop here.

"I want to achieve more. It's not going to be easy, and I don't know what lies ahead but of course I want to win as many matches and move as high up the rankings as possible, and continue to improve in every aspect of the game.

"I want to surpass my own limits and be better than before."

He is the 10th Singaporean to crack the sport's top-10 list since former women's singles star Zarinah Abdullah surged to world No. 3 in 1994. The highest-ranked men's singles player was Ronald Susilo, who was sixth in 2004.

The last time any local shuttler made the top 10 was in 2013, when mixed doubles duo Danny Bawa Chrisnanta and Vanessa Neo were ranked ninth.

The 24-year-old has enjoyed a superb run of form since going on a one-month training stint with Denmark's world No. 1 and Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen, as well as other players in the top 60, last August and September.

Loh was ranked 40th then, but went on to end a two-year title drought at the lower-tier Dutch Open in October, followed by his first World Tour Super 500 title at the Hylo Open in Germany in November, and topped it off with a stunning World Championships triumph in Spain in December.

For someone who is used to unleashing smashes that go over 300kmh and fly about the court retrieving them, even he was surprised at how fast he has climbed the ladder.

He said: "This has happened faster than I expected. One moment, I was just excited to be able to play high-level tournaments and challenging the top players, and now I'm in the top 10."

Although it seems like he has carried on from where he left off, reaching the Super 500 India Open final last month and helping Singapore win a historic BATC medal, his standards are set much higher now, as he nitpicked about his own recent performances.

"I still don't have enough consistency, which is what I'm trying to work on... I want to try and make every day a good day," said Loh.