The big one is upon us.

Let’s equip ourselves with some unique insights into the 126-year-old tournament.

GENERAL

• Inaugural edition in 1899 only consisted doubles events; singles were introduced a year later.
• Sir George Thomas is the most successful athlete with 21 championships (nine men’s doubles, eight mixed doubles, four men’s singles).
• Frank Devlin was the earliest non-English winner. The Irishman took men’s doubles (with England’s Guy Sautter) in 1922 and won on another 17 occasions. He sits second on the all-time list behind Thomas.
• Record for consecutive titles belongs to Indonesian men’s singles icon Rudy Hartono – seven (1968-1974).
• No athlete has more singles crowns than American Judy Devlin. Ten is her magic number.

OPEN ERA (1980 ONWARD)

• Men’s doubles world No.1s Kim Astrup/Anders Skaarup Rasmussen and Goh Soon Huat/Shevon Jemie Lai are the top seeds without prior triumphs.
• With no Malaysian pair having won mixed doubles, Goh/Lai will be particularly motivated to make history.
• For the maiden time in the SuperSeries/World Tour era (starting 2007), mixed doubles will feature none of the previous winners in the draw.
• Gao Ling is the last to win in two departments at the same edition (women’s and mixed doubles in 2006). Yang Po Hsuan, the only player seeded in two events this season, could match Gao in Birmingham.
• China are the most recent to do a sweep, in 2009, when they ended Denmark’s record that stood from 1948.
• They are the sole country with seeds in all five events this year.
• Li Yongbo/Tian Bingyi are the last men’s pair to finish victors on three occasions (1987, 1988, 1991).
• Twice defending champions Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto stand to emulate the Chinese legends.
• The Indonesians can also become the first in their discipline to win three consecutive editions since compatriots Tjun Tjun/Johan Wahjudi (1977-1980).
• Indonesia have also gone 31 years without toasting a women’s singles champion. All their four titles were won by Susi Susanti, whose footsteps fifth seed Gregoria Mariska Tunjung will seek to follow.
• Jonatan Christie could become the first back-to-back men’s singles king since Lee Chong Wei in 2011. It is the longest category not to see a holder defend his title.
• For China, men’s doubles is the department they have gone the longest without winning, after Liu Xiaolong/Qiu Zihan in 2013. This time they rely on two seeded pairs – Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang (No.3) and He Ji Ting/Ren Xiang Yu (6).
• Malaysia, on the other hand, have not had success in the discipline after Koo Kien Keat/Tan Boon Heong in 2007. Their best chance of ending the drought lies with second-seeded Goh Sze Fei/Nur Izzuddin.
• The Malaysians have also never celebrated a women’s doubles titlists. Their hopes are pinned on fifth seeds Pearly Tan/Thinaah Muralitharan.
• If Baek Ha Na/Lee So Hee are triumphant instead, they will be the first Korean pair in 31 years to retain the women’s doubles crown. Chung So Young/Gil Young Ah completed their double in 1994.

Standout Stat: After England’s Nora Perry/Jane Webster in 1981, no pair outside of Korea, China, Denmark or Japan finished top of the tree in women’s doubles.