SOFTBALL ON THE WAY UP

Sport's chief hails 'sustainable progress' after men's team crack top 10 in rankings

- David Lee Senior Sports Correspondent

Although the Singapore men's softball team lost to the Philippines in the SEA Games final in Thailand last month, they did enough to move into 10th spot of the world rankings. In Asia, they trail only world No. 1 Japan.

(ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO)

Following the disappointment of losing their SEA Games gold, the Singapore men's softball team celebrated a historic achievement as they broke into the world's top 10 for the first time.

In the latest World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) rankings released on Dec 31, the Republic rose one position with 1,078 points and replaced the Dominican Republic (1,052) in 10th place.

Japan (2,989) ended the year top of the pile, with Singapore the second-ranked Asian team on the list, which is based on points accumulated from tournaments over the past four years.

After seeing the team climb from 22nd to 10th over the past seven years, Singapore Baseball and Softball Association (SBSA) president Foo Pei said the team's results reflect “the hard work, discipline and belief shown by our players, coaches, team managers and support staff over an extended period of time”.

Noting that the national women's softball and men's baseball teams are ranked 22nd and 46th respectively, she felt the rankings show that SBSA is “building capability across our national programmes”.