is a Japanese badminton player and a member of the Japan national team. A graduate of Nihon University, Tanaka has represented the NTT East Badminton Team since April 2022. He has won three Super 300 titles: the Orléans Masters, the U.S. Open and the Swiss Open. He achieved a career-high world ranking of No. 19 on 24 June 2025.
Tanaka made his senior international debut in 2020 and was selected for the Japanese national team for the first time, notably without having competed on the international junior circuit. He won his first international title at the Peru Future Series and finished as the runner-up at the Jamaica International, facing compatriot Takuma Obayashi in both finals.
With his international season largely curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Tanaka's primary achievement was winning his first All Japan Championships title. In the final, he defeated pre-tournament favorite Kodai Naraoka.
In 2022, Tanaka secured two international titles and broke into the world's top 100 for the first time. He won the Polish International, defeating Jan Louda, and the North Harbour International, where he overcame Riku Hatano. He also finished as the runner-up to Hatano at the Réunion Open. Earlier in the year, after graduating from Nihon University, Tanaka joined the NTT East Badminton Team in April. By the end of the year, his performances propelled him to a world ranking of No. 91.
In 2023, Tanaka finished as the runner-up at the Super 100 Kaohsiung Masters, where he lost to Lin Chun-yi. Tanaka also reached the semifinals at the Indonesia Masters Super 100 I. Earlier in the year, he won two BWF International Challenge/Series titles: the Estonian International, where he defeated Alex Lanier, and the Osaka International, where he defeated Alwi Farhan. Following these results, Tanaka achieved a career-high world ranking of No. 41 on 2 October.
Tanaka's 2024 season highlighted by winning two Super 300 titles. He won his first BWF World Tour title in March at the Orléans Masters, defeating compatriot Koo Takahashi, followed by the U.S. Open title, where he defeated Lei Lanxi. His results on the world tour included semifinal and quarterfinal finishes at the Canada Open and Japan Open, respectively. Additionally, he won the Denmark Challenge in May, where he defeated Alex Lanier. These results propelled his world ranking from No. 56 at the beginning of the year to a career-high of No. 27, breaking into the top 30 for the first time
Nationally, Tanaka won the Japan Ranking Circuit Tournament in May. He concluded the year by securing his second All Japan Championships title, defeating top seed Kodai Naraoka in the semifinal. His national victories came under the coaching of two-time world champion Kento Momota, who had retired from international competition earlier that year.
In February, Tanaka contributed to the bronze medal win at the Asia Mixed Team Championships. On the BWF World Tour, at the Super 1000 All England Open in March, he defeated eighth-seed Kodai Naraoka in the opening round. He later reached the semifinals of the Super 500 Malaysia Masters in May, where he was defeated by Srikanth Kidambi. Following a second-round appearance at the Super 1000 Indonesia Open, Tanaka achieved a career-high world ranking of No. 19 on 24 June.
In August, Tanaka made his World Championships debut, upsetting world No. 4 Li Shifeng in the first round before being eliminated in the second round. He concluded the season with a runner-up finish at the Super 500 Australian Open in November. During the tournament, Tanaka eliminated top seed Jonatan Christie and Lin Chun-yi to reach the final, where he lost to Lakshya Sen.
Tanaka began the season at the Malaysia Open, where he was eliminated in the first round. He was part of the Japanese team that won Japan's first men's team title at the Asia Team Championships. In the final against China, he defeated Hu Zhe'an in straight games. He won his first title of the year in the Swiss Open against Alwi Farhan.
Tanaka married on 5 February 2025.
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tours are divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.
Men's singles
Men's singles
Record against Year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi-finalists, and Olympic quarter-finalists. Accurate as of 15 March 2026.