He did not win an individual title, but he was instrumental in India’s historic Thomas Cup victory in Bangkok. His consistency earned him a spot in the BWF World Tour Finals and a nomination for BWF Player of the Year.
Lakshya Sen, for example, remained at world number seven, while Kidambi Srikanth dropped a spot to 12th.
P V Sindhu, who has been out of action since winning the Commonwealth Games, fell to world number seven in women’s singles, while Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty remained at number five.
The fast-rising duo of MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila climbed three places to world number 21, while Gayatri Gopichand and Treesa Jolly, who won bronze at the CWG in Birmingham, climbed one place to world number 17.
Ishaan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Crasto moved up two places to finish 18th in mixed doubles.
