The official world women’s rankings have been updated for the final time this season following victory for Ng On Yee at the season-ending The Winchester Women’s Open this weekend.
The WWS world rankings operate on a rolling two-year basis (excluding the 2020/21 season which did not take place). At this revision points earned from the 2018 World 6-Red Championship, 2018 World 10-Red Championship, 2019 World 6-Red Championship and 2019 World 10-Red Championship, were replaced by those earned at The Winchester Women’s Open.
Points from the 2018 Festival events were previously extended by two seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but have now been removed as scheduled.
Reanne Evans has secured top spot in the season-ending world rankings for a third consecutive season, with maximum points secured from six of the 12 tournaments currently counting towards her overall total.
However, her advantage at the top of the table has been slashed following the action in Leicester, with Ng On Yee having closed from 19,312 points behind to just 7,812, while Nutcharut Wongharuthai trails by 12,625, compared to 25,998 prior to the weekend.
This is primarily because Evans was defending maximum points from all four of the events removed from the rankings following the The Winchester Open, having completed a clean sweep of victories at both the 2018 and 2019 Festival events.
Combined with her closest chasers both reaching the final in Leicester and the stage is set for an intriguing three-way fight for top spot next season.
Rebecca Kenna entered the tournament needing to reach the knockout rounds in order to secure fourth position – and the second available World Snooker Tour card – and duly did so, ultimately losing to eventual champion Ng On Yee at the quarter-final stage.
With the first six positions remaining unchanged, the biggest mover within the top 10 is Thailand’s Ploychompoo Laokiatphong, who climbs three places to a career-best of seventh following her run to the semi-finals. In fact, 19-year-old Laokiatphong has now reached the last four on three of her previous four tournaments played, form that has underpinned her ranking rise.
She moves ahead of Laura Evans, Suzie Terry and Steph Daughtery, while Wendy Jans – who despite her absence in Leicester was defending zero points having not played the Festival events in 2018 or 2019, edges ahead of Daughtery to maintain tenth position.
With a significant number of points coming off the ranking list at this cut-off, there have been a number of big moves outside of the top 10, in particular for players who have joined the Tour during the 2021/22 season.
World Championship semi-finalist Jamie Hunter continues her ascent by gaining seven positions to achieve a new career-best position of 14, while Harriet Haynes (15), Chloe White (16), Chucky Preston (17) and Zoe Killington (19) have also risen to new career-highs within the top 20.
Other significant movers include the returning Mary Talbot-Deegan (21) and Tessa Davidson (27), with Kate Le Gallez (26), Miina Tani (33), Chrissy Allwood (40), Nat Howard (41), Annamaria Wilkins (43), Dalia Alska (45), Anna Lynch (47), Laura Killington (48) also moving up.
In the Under-21 rankings it is Steph Daughtery who has finished the season in top spot, having won three of the five junior competitions staged since September 2021.
There is guaranteed to be a change at the top following the first tournament of next season however, with both Daughtery and fifth ranked Chloe White due to be removed from the list, as the pair turn 21 during the summer months.
This will mean that two-time World Under-21 champion Ploychompoo Laokiatphong – who defeated Daughtery in Sunday’s final – is set to assume top spot for the first time later this year.
There is, however, a new number one in the Seniors rankings, with Tessa Davidson moving ahead of Jenny Poulter and Jan Hughes following her latest triumph at The Winchester last weekend.
Winner of the World Women’s Seniors Championship in February, Davidson remains unbeaten in Seniors tournaments since her return to the Tour in January 2022, with three titles from three now under her belt.
Further information relating to the 2022/23 World Women’s Snooker Tour calendar will be published soon.