Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah may be celebrating their third World Tour title of the season after winning the Kumamoto Masters, but the latest BWF World Rankings serve as a reminder that the road to World No. 1 is far from easy.
Despite their title in Japan, the Malaysian pair gained little ground in the race.
As of the latest Tuesday update, they still trail China’s Liu Sheng Shu / Tan Ning by around 17,000 ranking points.
Sheng Shu–Tan Ning remain firmly at the top with 110,084 points, while Pearly–Thinaah sit second with 92,816 points.
Their lead is heavily supported by major victories this season, including:
- World Championships
- Asian Championships
- Super 1000 Indonesia Open
- Super 1000 China Open
With BWF rankings calculated based on the best 10 results within 52 weeks, consistency alone isn’t enough.
To realistically challenge for the top spot, Pearly–Thinaah will need to:
- Win more major titles
- Outperform Sheng Shu–Tan Ning in upcoming tournaments
On the brighter side, the Malaysians have now held the World No. 2 ranking for 24 consecutive weeks — the longest and strongest run of their career.
Momentum is on their side — now it’s a matter of turning deep runs into big wins.
