Confirmed! The Men’s Singles Qualifiers for the 2025 World Tour Finals
The high-stakes battle for a place in the prestigious HSBC BWF World Tour Finals 2025 reached a dramatic conclusion today. Following the outcome of the SATHIO GROUP Australian Open 2025 semifinals, the final eight Men’s Singles players who will compete in the season-ending tournament in Hangzhou have been confirmed.
Japan’s Kodai Naraoka has emerged as the eighth and final qualifier, capitalizing on the surprising loss of his main rival, Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-yi, in the Australian Open semifinals.
The qualification race, known as the “Race to Finals,” saw its last twists and turns at the Super 500 event in Sydney. For Lin Chun-yi (ranked 12th on the list with 70,320 points before the Australian Open), reaching the final was the minimum requirement to overtake Naraoka, who had already finished his qualification campaign. However, Lin was stopped in his tracks today, losing to Japan’s Yushi Tanaka, thereby sealing his non-qualification.
The Top Tier: A Stellar Lineup
The field for the 2025 Finals is a who’s who of men’s badminton, promising an electrifying week of action in December. Leading the charge is Thailand’s reigning World Champion, Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who finished atop the rankings with a dominant 93,370 points. The Thai superstar’s consistency throughout the season, which included his title win at the Kumamoto Masters Japan, solidified his number one seed status.
Close behind are China’s rising star Li Shi Feng (90,240 points) and Chinese Taipei’s veteran Chou Tien Chen (87,320 points), rounding out the top three. These three athletes have consistently shown world-class form, accumulating points across multiple Super 750 and Super 1000 events.
European and Indonesian Challengers
The middle of the pack features a mix of European flair and Indonesian tenacity. Denmark’s Anders Antonsen is the highest-ranked European player, securing the fourth spot with a strong season. France’s Christo Popov has also enjoyed a breakthrough year, comfortably qualifying in fifth place and marking a significant milestone in his career.
Indonesian fan favourite Jonatan Christie has ensured his presence at the Finals by claiming the sixth spot. Christie’s ability to peak at major tournaments has proven crucial in earning the necessary points to compete against the world’s elite.
The Final Battle for the Cut
The final qualifying spots brought the most drama. China’s Shi Yuqi secured a robust seventh-place finish. Although the BWF limits a maximum of two players per Member Association in the Finals, Shi Yuqi’s points tally, combined with Li Shi Feng’s, ensures that China will have their full allocation of two representatives in the Men’s Singles event.
The nail-biting conclusion belonged to Kodai Naraoka. Despite not competing in the final stages of the Australian Open, his points from earlier in the season—including his title at the Kumamoto Masters—proved just enough to withstand the last-minute pressure from Lin Chun-yi. The defeat of Lin Chun-yi in the semi-finals in Sydney meant that Naraoka’s total of 76,300 points was not surpassed, allowing the Japanese talent to snatch the final golden ticket to Hangzhou.
The stage is now set for the season finale, where these eight gladiators will battle for the prestigious BWF World Tour Finals trophy. The confirmed Men’s Singles qualifiers for the 2025 BWF World Tour Finals are as follows:
- Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Thailand)
- Li Shifeng (China)
- Chou Tien-chen (Chinese Taipei)
- Anders Antonsen (Denmark)
- Christo Popov (France)
- Jonatan Christie (Indonesia)
- Shi Yuqi (China)
- Kodai Naraoka (Japan)
