Massaro
moves into Top Three
 The
December WISPA rankings were bound to feature some big
changes with the World Open and Hong Kong Open taking place
in November, and sure enough there were career highs aplenty
throughout the top 100, and the highest of those was at
number three as Laura Massaro, the WISPA Player of
the Year, moved into the world’s top three for the first
time.
 Massaro
started the year ranked at number 10 but after success in
Cleveland and the British Nationals in the first half of the
year, followed by her first World Series win in the
prestigious US Open, she has asserted herself as a major
threat to Nicol David’s reign on the women’s game.
The top two remain unchanged. Jenny Duncalf reached
her first World Open final to consolidate her number two
position, showing great form before being outclassed by
Nicol David who collected a record sixth world title.
David had a few surprise losses this year - two at the
racket of Massaro -but still amassed seven titles, and has
now been at the top of the rankings for 85 consecutive
months.
 Kasey
Brown makes her debut in the top five, becoming the
Australian no.1 for the first time as she leaps above
Rachael Grinham. Grinham’s drop to no.6 ends her stay in
the top 5, a place she has impressively held since February
2003!
Raneem El Weleily moves back up to a career high
equalling no.7 after reaching her first World Series final
in Hong Kong, and Natalie Grinham moves up one place
to no.9, her highest ranking since August 2010, after
reaching the World Open semi final in front of her home
crowd in Rotterdam.
 Outside
the top ten, Low Wee Wern records her highest ranking
at no.11.
The Malaysian wasn’t having the best year as she saw her
ranking drop to 21 in October, but winning the China Open,
her biggest title to date, seemed to change her fortune and
she reached the Qatar Classic and World Open quarter finals
as well as the Hong Kong Open semi final, with victories
over four top ten players along the way.
Two players who achieved a best-ever world open result for
anyone from their respective countries are rewarded:
Mexico's Samantha Teran has moved up to no.13 on the
back of her semi-final appearance in Rotterdam, and the star
of Dipika Pallikal, the first ever Indian to reach
the World Open quarter final, continues to shine as she
moves up to a career high no.17.
 Joey
Chan had a November to remember, capturing her biggest
title and first of the year at the Macau Open, then just
days later reaching the Hong Kong Open quarter final,
upsetting Kasey Brown before losing a thriller to El
Weleily. She makes her top 20 debut at no.20.
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Career highs in the top 100:
Kanzy El Dafrawy up to no.29 after reaching the World
Open last 16. That makes 6 Egyptians in the top 30.
Gaby Huber makes her top 30 debut at no.30. She
started the year outside the top 50.
Yathreb Adel up to no.32. The youngest player in the
top 100 pushed Massaro in the World Open 1st round.
Melody Francis captured her 5th title of the year at
the Mackay Open and moves to no.36.
Siyoli Waters at no.38, Misaki Kobayashi up to
no.39, Sina Wall up to no.41, Samantha Cornett
up to no.44, Lauren Selby up to no.47, Olga
Ertlova up to no.48, Ahn Eun Chan up to no.53,
Lisa Aitken up to 55, Coline Aumard up to no.56,
Amanda Landers-Murphy to 57, Salma Hany up to
no.59.
Tesni Evans up to no.65, Liu Tsz-Ling up to
68, Tamika Saxby up to 73, Kristen Lange up to
no.82, Megan Craig up to no.84, Christine Nunn
up to no.86 and Vanessa Pickard up to no.90.
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