Career high ranking for Ouseph ahead of World Championships

RAJIV Ouseph's victory in the US Open has moved him into badminton's top 20 for the first time ever.

ON THE RISE: Rajiv Ouseph, the three-time national champion, leads the England squad for next month's World Badminton Championships 

The 23-year old is positioned 18th on the newly released rankings and will has been named in a nine-strong England squad for next month's World Championships in Paris.

England controversially withdrew from the last World Championships in Hyderabad due to security concerns but Ouseph and his team-mates are determined to put that behind them as they build towards London 2012.

Ouseph will be joined in the men's singles by two-times English Nationals runner-up and world number 31 Carl Baxter.

The line-up also includes 2006 world mixed doubles champion Nathan Robertson and men's doubles partner Anthony Clark, who won silver medals in mixed and men's doubles at the same championships in Madrid.

Robertson and Clark are England's best medal hopes in the squad, having won the 2009 Singapore Open title to give England their first Super Series title. They are ranked number 20 in the world and are the 2004 European silver medallists.

Robertson and Clark are joined in the men's doubles by Yorkshire's Robin Middleton and Surrey's Chris Langridge while Leeds pair Gabby White and Jenny Wallwork will tackle the women's doubles, where they are ranked number 19 in the world.

World number 12 pair Robertson and Wallwork are each tackling two events in Paris. The European bronze medallists lead England's mixed doubles challenge in Paris along with Chris Adcock and White.

But European women's doubles bronze medallists Heather Olver and Mariana Agathangelou have seen their hopes dashed by injury.

They qualified for the women's doubles but Agathangelou's tendonitis in the foot has forced her and Olver to turn down their invitation to compete. Agathangelou has also missed out on the mixed doubles with Middleton because of the injury.