KUALA LUMPUR: S. Sivasangari is expected to climb up one or two rungs in the women's world rankings after a commendable outing at the Hong Kong Open.
The world No. 17's gallant run at the platinum-level Hong Kong Open ended on Friday in the quarter-finals after losing 11-8, 11-6, 10-12, 11-9 to fourth seed Nele Gilis of Belgium in her last PSA Tour tournament of the season.
Sivasangari's season has been nothing short of remarkable, especially considering her return to the tour early this year following a road accident in 2022.
For the record, Sivasangari achieved her career-best ranking of No. 16 in July last year.
Besides clinching the Hong Kong Football Club championship last month, she defied expectations by securing two gold medals at the Hangzhou Asian Games in September.
The 24-year-old also reached the Malaysia Cup semi-finals in Seremban and the quarter-finals of the Singapore Open last month.
If everything goes as planned, Sivasangari will likely break into the top 10 next year.
A top-10 ranking would qualify her for inclusion in the Road to Gold programme for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
National coach Ajaz Azmat said Sivasangari's ranking will improve by one or two rungs on Tuesday.
"Overall, Sivasangari performed splendidly in four back-to-back tournaments since Nov 5. It is never easy to play high-tempo games in back-to-back tournaments.
"Despite the hectic schedule, Sivasangari exhibited great fighting spirit and fitness levels in those tournaments."
Sivasangari is expected to return to Malaysia on Monday, where, after a short break, she will undergo training for a couple of weeks before heading back to the United States to train under coach David Palmer in January.
She is expected to kick off her 2024 season at the Tournament of Champions in New York from Jan 18-25.