Ratchanok Intanon


Ratchanok Intanon is a Thai badminton player who became the first Thai to become No.1 in women's singles. She is known for her relaxed hitting motion and light footwork, which has been described as 'balletic' by commentators such as Gillian Clark. She became world champion in women's singles in 2013.

Career

2008–2010

In 2008, Intanon entered the international circuit at an unbelievable young age of 13. The first International tournament she played was the Laos International series in which she played both in singles and doubles event. She lost the singles final to Vietnam's Lê Ngọc Nguyên Nhung. Intanon won her first individual International title in 2009, while she was only 14, by winning the Vietnam International Challenge. She made history by becoming the youngest-ever champion at the 2009 BWF World Junior Championships at 14 in Malaysia by beating Porntip Buranaprasertsuk, her compatriot. She reached final of Malaysia International Challenge 2009, losing out to Sapsiree Taerattanachai. She also reached the 2009 Southeast Asian games women's singles final, but lost to her compatriot Salakjit Ponsana.
In 2010, at the age of 15, she successfully defended her title at the 2010 BWF World Junior Championships in Mexico by beating Misaki Matsutomo. Her successful run continued after she won Smiling Fish International Event, beating teammate Rawinda Prajongjai. She won back-to-back Grand Prix tournaments by winning the Vietnam Open Grand Prix beating China's Zhou Hui and Indonesia Open Grand Prix Gold after winning from Cheng Shao-chieh, top Chinese Taipei's player. In the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games, she won a silver medal as a member of the women's team. In the final, she lost to Wang Xin, at that time world number 1, 22–20, 17–21, 14–21.

2011–2012

She participated in Bwf World Championships & lost in 3rd round to eventual winner Wang Yihan. She was a finalist at the Chinese Taipei Open where she was defeated by Sung Ji-hyun. She became the most successful player ever in individual events at the BWF World Junior Championships, winning the women's singles title for the third straight time. This time by defeating Indonesia's Elyzabeth Purwaningtyas. She won the 2011 Syed Modi Grand Prix where she received a walkover against Porntip Buranaprasertsuk in final. She was also a member of the women's team that defeated Indonesia in the final of the Badminton at the 2011 Southeast Asian Games. She herself was a bronze medalist in singles event, where she lost in the semifinals to Singapore's Fu Mingtian.
In 2012, Intanon, at 16 years of age, was awarded the Best Female Athlete Award in Thailand after winning the world junior title for three successive years. She reached the finals of the SCG Thailand Open 2012 but lost to Saina Nehwal 19–21, 21–15, 21–10 in the finals. After defeating higher seeded Germany's Juliane Schenk in round of 16, she reached quarterfinals of 2012 Olympic Games where she set her clash with 2nd seed Wang Xin. Despite leading 21–17 and 16–9 in the second game, she failed to close the match and eventually lost 21–17, 18–21, 14–21. She entered the finals of a Super Series tournament for the first time in the 2012 China Open Super Series Premier but lost to Li Xuerui 12–21, 9–21. She qualified for the 2012 BWF Super Series Finals and won all of her group matches in straight games against formidable opponents Juliane Schenk, Tine Baun & Saina Nehwal. She lost in the semifinals there to Wang Shixian. She finished the year as world number 9.

2013

2013 was Intanon's best year of her career. She reached the finals of the 2013 All England Open Badminton Championships, losing to Tine Rasmussen 14–21, 21–16, 10–21. She was the youngest ever singles finalist at the All England tournament. She lost in the final again by getting defeated from Wang Shixian in the 2013 Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold. She won her first Superseries tournament by beating Juliane Schenk 22–20, 21–14 in the 2013 Yonex Sunrise India Open to become the youngest-ever Superseries winner at the age of 18 years, 2 months and 22 days. She again reached the finals of the SCG Thailand Open 2013. This time she won the title, beating Busanan Ongbumrungpan 20–22, 21–19, 21–13 to become the first Thai ever to win the women's singles title at the Thailand Open since it was first held in 1984.
She withdrew from both the Indonesia Open SSP and Singapore Open SS to recover from her foot injury and prepare for the BWF World Championships. In World Championships in August, Intanon was seeded 4th. She reached the quarterfinals of this tournament for the first time, where she defeated Carolina Marín in a very hard-fought encounter. Her semifinal path was relatively easy, where she won against P. V. Sindhu in 2 games. In the final, she won the title, beating out world number 1 and Olympic gold medalist Li Xuerui 22–20, 18–21, 21–14 She was the first-ever Thai player to be the World Champion. At the age of 18, she was also the youngest singles World Champion ever. She became the World Champion while still being eligible to play in the 2013 BWF Junior World Championships in Bangkok. After the World Championships, she injured her back, which affected her performance and due to that, she failed to qualify for the 2013 BWF Super Series Finals and finished 2013 as the World number 3. She was awarded the "2013 Best Females Athletes Award" from the Thailand Sports Authority.

2014

Intanon reached the final of the Korea Open for the first time where she met her nemesis Wang Yihan. Her losing streak against Yihan continued further after she lost 13–21, 19–21. She was awarded "Best Asian Sporting Icon" by Fox Sports Asia, based on voting from internet fans on its website. She reached the finals of the Indonesia Open but again lost to Li Xuerui 13–21, 13–21. She failed to defend World Championships title by losing in the second round to Japanese Minatsu Mitani 21–8, 12–21, 18–21. She was defeated by Bae Yeon-ju in the quarterfinals of 2014 Asian Games by 4–21, 21–18, 8–21 scores. She qualified for the Super Series Final in Dubai but failed to pass the round-robin after losing group matches against Tai Tzu-ying & Akane Yamaguchi. She finished the 2014 year as World number 6.

2015

Intanon made a comeback by reaching the final of the India Open for the second time but lost to her opponent, Saina Nehwal, 16–21, 14–21. A month later, she became the first Thai singles player to win the Asia Championship by defeating Li Xuerui in the final match 20–22, 23–21, 21–12 in China. It was the first time that Intanon had beaten Li since the final of the 2013 World Championships. In June, she won her first Super Series Premier title by beating Yui Hashimoto of Japan in straight games, 21–11, 21–10, at the Indonesia Open. However, at the BWF World Championships, she had to retire from court when 8–5 up in the decider against Lindaweni Fanetri in the round of 16 from cramp yet again.
She won a gold medal with the Thailand Women's team at the 2015 Southeast Asian Games in Singapore. After the Indonesia Open, she did not reach the final of any tournaments but earned enough points to qualify for the Dubai Super Series Final tournament. In the group stage, she lost to Wang Yihan, but won 2 other matches against Wang Shixian & Sung Ji-hyun henceforth progressed to semifinals. She lost to Wang Yihan there, which brought their head-to-head record to 0–12. She finished the 2015 season at world number 7.

2016

Intanon won the 2016 Princess Sirivannavari Thailand Masters, a second Grand Prix Gold tournament in Thailand, by beating Sun Yu in the final 21–19, 18–21, 21–17. She won the Indian Open Super Series for the second time by beating Li Xuerui in the final 21–17, 21–18. In the 2016 Malaysia Super Series Premier the week after, she finally won a match over Wang Yihan by beating her in the semifinal 21–11, 21–19. In the final, she beat Tai Tzu-ying 21–14, 21–15 to earn the Malaysia Open title for the first time. It was Intanon's first time to win two consecutive Superseries tournaments. Intanon then became the first singles player to win three Superseries in three consecutive weeks by winning the Singapore Super Series, defeating Sun Yu in the final. By winning three Superseries in a row, Intanon also rose to the No.1 spot in the world rankings, becoming the first Thai to achieve this feat. Her Winning streak ended after she lost to Sayaka Sato in the Asian Championships.
Intanon qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics and was the Thai flag bearer. At the Olympics she failed to pass the Round of 16, losing to the Japanese rising star, Akane Yamaguchi, in a two-gamer 19–21, 16–21. After Olympics, she suffered a knee injury which forced her to retire from various upcoming tournaments. Her performance eventually declined, but she was able to qualify for the Super Series Finals. Intanon lost in straight games to Sung Ji-hyun & Tai Tzu-ying, and retired injured against He Bingjiao. She finished 2016 at a world ranking of 5.

2017

She played in her first tournament of 2017 in March, the Yonex All England Open. She made her way to the quarter-finals, where she faced off against world no. 2, Carolina Marín. Intanon won 22–20, 13–21, 21–18. She was 11–18 down in the rubber set but won 10 straight points to close out the match. In the semifinals, she faced Akane Yamaguchi. Intanon won 22–20, 21–16 in 48 minutes of play to secure a spot in the final against Tai Tzu-ying. Tai beat Intanon 16–21, 20–22.
Intanon later in the year took the SCG Thailand Open title, beating compatriot Busanan Ongbamrungphan in the final, 21–18, 12–21, 21–16. She also won the Skycity New Zealand Open beating Saena Kawakami in the final 21–14, 16–21, 21–15. She was disappointed in the World Championships when she went on losing side against Chen Yufei in quarterfinal. She participated in the Denmark Open Premier Series where she beat Sung Ji-hyun and Tai Tzu-ying. Intanon met Akane Yamaguchi in the final, and beat her in a three game match with 21–19 in the rubber set when she was 16–19 down, to win the title. She said that she dedicated the title to Thailand's king, Bhumibol Adulyadej, who had died, the year before. She qualified for the season ending Superseries Finals where she defeated Sung Ji-hyun & Tai Tzu-ying also in 2 games. Although she lost the 3rd group match to Chen Yufei, still she reached the knockout phase. She was defeated by Akane Yamaguchi there, in 3 games where Ratchanok spoiled her lead in the 3rd game.

2018

At the beginning of the year, Intanon participated in and won the Malaysia Masters Super 500 tournament, beating Tai Tzu-ying in the finals, winning 24–22 in the third set. In the World Championships, she lost to Saina Nehwal in the second round. At the Asian Games, Intanon made it to the quarter-final stage before losing out to Saina Nehwal again. She made the finals of the Yonex Sunrise Hong Kong Open, losing to Nozomi Okuhara 19–21, 22–24. She qualified for the HSBC World Tour Finals, where she finally ended her Losing streak against Chen Yufei in 3 games. She lost to Nozomi Okuhara but defeated Canada's Michelle Li to secure semifinal spot. She lost in the semifinals to eventual gold medalist P. V. Sindhu. She finished the year at world no. 8.

2019

Intanon participated in the Malaysia Masters Super 500, hoping to defend her title. She won all of her matches in straight sets, to set up a final against Carolina Marín. She beat Marin 21–9, 22–20 to successfully defend her title. At the final of German Open Super 300 She lost to Akane Yamaguchi in three games, losing 23–25 in the deciding game. Intanon then won her third Indian Open title by beating He Bingjiao with 21–15, 21–14. This was Intanon's first victory over her. She lost the final of Thailand Open to her nemesis Chen Yufei in close 2 games. She won the bronze medal at 2019 Basel World Championship after losing to Nozomi Okuhara in three tight games 21–17, 18–21, 21–15 in the semifinals. Intanon was just one points away from Korea Open Title when playing against He Bingjiao in final, but was denied by tenacity of her opponent who saved 4 match points and won the next game to snatch out victory from Intanon.
Intanon failed an out-of-competition drug test in April but the Thai star was not banned by the BWF. The BWF statement reads: "The ethics hearing panel determined Ms. Ratchanok Intanon committed an anti-doping rule violation, but as the athlete was able to demonstrate that her adverse analytical finding was related to the ingestion of meat contaminated with clenbuterol, she was found to bear no fault or negligence for the violation, and thus no period of ineligibility has been imposed on her." Her jinx of losing against Chen Yufei continued when she lost to her in the final of Hongkong Open. She participated in World Tour Finals, where she beat Busanan Ongbamrungphan in straight games in Round 1, she lost to Tai tzu-ying in very hardly contested match, failing in 3 sets. Her hopes of qualifying for knockout round disappear when she lost to Nozomi Okuhara in the last group match.

2020

Intanon won her 1st title of the year, clinching Indonesia Masters title by beating out Carolina Marín in 3 hard fought games 21–19, 11–21, 21–18.

Records currently held

BWF World Championships

Women's singles
YearVenueOpponentScoreResult
2019St. Jakobshalle, Basel, Switzerland Nozomi Okuhara21–17, 18–21, 15–21 Bronze
2013Tianhe Sports Center, Guangzhou, China Li Xuerui22–20, 18–21, 21–14 Gold

Asian Championships

Women's singles
YearVenueOpponentScoreResult
2015Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium, Wuhan, China Li Xuerui20–22, 23–21, 21–12 Gold

Southeast Asian Games

Women's singles
YearVenueOpponentScoreResult
2011Istora Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia Fu Mingtian17–21, 21–19, 20–22 Bronze
2009National Sports Complex, Vientiane, Laos Salakjit Ponsana14–21, 21–18, 10–21 Silver

BWF World Junior Championships

Girls' singles
YearVenueOpponentScoreResult
2011Taoyuan Arena, Taipei, Taiwan Elyzabeth Purwaningtyas21–6, 18–21, 21–13 Gold
2010Domo del Code Jalisco, Guadalajara, Mexico Misaki Matsutomo21–13, 16–21, 21–10 Gold
2009Stadium Sultan Abdul Halim, Alor Setar, Malaysia Porntip Buranaprasertsuk21–15, 21–23, 21–10 Gold

Asian Junior Championships

Girls' doubles
YearVenuePartnerOpponentScoreResult
2010Stadium Juara,
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia		 Pijitjan Wangpaiboonkj Ou Dongni
Bao Yixin		7–21, 17–21 Bronze

BWF World Tour

The BWF World Tour, announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation. The BWF World Tour is divided into six levels: World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300, and the BWF Tour Super 100.
Women's singles
YearTournamentLevelOpponentScoreResult
2020Indonesia MastersSuper 500 Carolina Marín21–19, 11–21, 21–18 Winner
2019Hong Kong OpenSuper 500 Chen Yufei18–21, 21–13, 13–21 Runner-up
2019Korea OpenSuper 500 He Bingjiao21–18, 22–24, 17–21 Runner-up
2019Thailand OpenSuper 500 Chen Yufei20–22, 18–21 Runner-up
2019India Open Super 500 He Bingjiao21–15, 21–14 Winner
2019German OpenSuper 300 Akane Yamaguchi21–16, 14–21, 23–25 Runner-up
2019Malaysia Masters Super 500 Carolina Marín21–9, 22–20 Winner
2018Hong Kong OpenSuper 500 Nozomi Okuhara19–21, 22–24 Runner-up
2018Malaysia Masters Super 500 Tai Tzu-ying21–16, 14–21, 24–22 Winner

BWF Superseries

The BWF Superseries, launched on 14 December 2006 and implemented in 2007, is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by Badminton World Federation. The BWF Superseries has two levels: Superseries and Superseries Premier. Since 2011, each Superseries season has featured twelve tournaments around the world, with successful players invited to the Superseries Finals held at the end of the year.
Women's singles
YearTournamentOpponentScoreResult
2017Denmark Open Akane Yamaguchi14–21, 21–15, 21–19 Winner
2017All England Open Tai Tzu-ying16–21, 20–22 Runner-up
2016Singapore Open Sun Yu18–21, 21–11, 21–14 Winner
2016Malaysia Open Tai Tzu-ying21–14, 21–15 Winner
2016India Open Li Xuerui21–17, 21–18 Winner
2015Indonesia Open Yui Hashimoto21–11, 21–10 Winner
2015India Open Saina Nehwal16–21, 14–21 Runner-up
2014Indonesia Open Li Xuerui13–21, 13–21 Runner-up
2014Korea Open Wang Yihan13–21, 19–21 Runner-up
2013India Open Juliane Schenk22–20, 21–14 Winner
2013All England Open Tine Baun15–21, 21–16, 10–21 Runner-up
2012China Open Li Xuerui12–21, 9–21 Runner-up

BWF Grand Prix

The BWF Grand Prix has two levels, the BWF Grand Prix and Grand Prix Gold. It is a series of badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation since 2007.
Women's singles
YearTournamentOpponentScoreResult
2017New Zealand Open Saena Kawakami21–14, 16–21, 21–15 Winner
2017Thailand Open Busanan Ongbumrungpan21–18, 12–21, 21–16 Winner
2016Thailand Masters Sun Yu21–19, 18–21, 21–17 Winner
2013Thailand Open Busanan Ongbumrungpan20–22, 21–19, 21–13 Winner
2013Swiss Open Wang Shixian16–14, 12–21 Runner-up
2012Thailand Open Saina Nehwal21–19, 15–21, 10–21 Runner-up
2011Syed Modi International Porntip BuranaprasertsukWalkover Winner
2011Chinese Taipei Open Sung Ji-hyun20–22, 15–21 Runner-up
2010Indonesian Masters Cheng Shao-chieh21–12, 19–21, 21–16 Winner
2010Vietnam Open Zhou Hui21–17, 22–20 Winner

BWF International Challenge/Series

Women's singles
YearTournamentOpponentScoreResult
2010Smiling Fish International Rawinda Prajongjai21–10, 21–17 Winner
2009Malaysia International Sapsiree Taerattanachai11–21, 21–19, 20–22 Runner-up
2009Vietnam International Maria Elfira Christina21–18, 21–14 Winner
2008Laos International Lê Ngọc Nguyên Nhung22–20, 14–21, 18–21 Runner-up

Women's doubles
YearTournamentPartnerOpponentScoreResult
2010Smiling Fish International Pijitjan Wangpaiboonkj Rodjana Chuthabunditkul
Wiranpatch Hongchookeat		20–22, 11–21 Runner-up

Mixed doubles
YearTournamentPartnerOpponentScoreResult
2008Laos International Pisit Poodchalat Dương Bảo Đức
Thái Thị Hồng Gấm		16–21, 21–18, 17–21 Runner-up

Personal life

Intanon is the daughter of Winutchai Intanon and Kumpan Suvarsara. She also has a brother. She was born in Yasothon Province in the northeast of Thailand, but moved at the age of three months with her parents, who worked at the Banthongyord sweets factory in the Bang Khae District of Bangkok. As a child, Intanon would run around the factory floor. Factory owner Kamala Thongkorn, worried that she would be burned by boiling water and hot sugar, allowed Intanon to play at the factory's badminton courts. She started playing when she was six years old, and won her first championship at the age of seven.
Intanon used her prize money and endorsement fees to aid her parents and brother. Her father opened a food shop with her help. "I wanted to be a national player like my older friends and play for the country, because that was the only way I could help my parents to improve our status and leave poverty," she has said.
Intanon trains at the Banthongyord Badminton School. Her coach is Patapol Ngernsrisuk, former Olympian and son of Kamala Thongkorn.

Career statistics

Singles
PlayedWinsLossesBalance
Total572396176+220
Current year 13103+7

Doubles
PlayedWinsLossesBalance
Total12660
Current year 0000

;Prize money
SinglesDoubles
Total$896.672.50$132.50
Current year$31.400.000

Event2011201320142015201720182019
World Championships3R Gold3R3RQF3R Bronze

Event201120122013201420152016201720182019
Asian Championships1R2RQF2R Gold2RQF2Rw/d

Event20092011
Southeast Asian Games Silver Bronze

Record against selected opponents

Record against year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semifinalists, and Olympic quarterfinalists. Accurate as of 13 March 2020.

Royal decorations

Intanon has won many awards and honors in recognition of her achievements.
OrganizationAwardYear
IOC Sport-Inspiring Young People Trophy2010
BWF Most Promising Player of The Year 2009 – Eddie Choong Trophy2009