Badminton: Rankings boost for Imogen Bankier and Chris Adcock

IMOGEN Bankier and Chris Adcock have received a rankings morale boost as they prepare for the last two events in their year-long Olympic qualifying race.

The world silver medallists were rewarded for their victory at last weekend’s Finnish Open by climbing into the world’s top ten for the first time.

The win in Vantaa earned them 4,000 ranking points and lifted them two places to No 10 in the new world ranking list, released yesterday. Their previous highest was No 11.

The Anglo-Scottish pair are now 6,400 ranking points ahead of GB rivals Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork, who remained at world No 21 after missing the tournament in Finland. If they live up to their seedings, the two pairs are on course to meet for the third time in recent months in the quarter-finals at the European Championships in Sweden from 16-21 April.

Robertson and Wallwork won the first meeting in three games in the Malaysian Open in January, but Bankier and Adcock took the second 25-23 in the third game in the second round of the Swiss Open last month.

After the Europeans, the two pairs have just the Indian Open Superseries at the end of April to scoop their final ranking points before the end of qualification.

Glasgow’s Susan Egelstaff moved up three places to No 33 after reaching the Finnish semi-finals, while GB rival Elizabeth Cann also went up three places to No 56 after reaching the last eight in Finland.