The top Tekken 7 players ahead of the 2020 season

With EVO 2020 and Tekken World Tour 2020 on the horizon, as well as various other FGC tournaments, there’s an electricity in the air.  

It’s an exciting time for Tekken 7 fans and players alike, and 2020 will no doubt be another excellent year for the scene.  

With that in mind, we look at the top Tekken 7 players ahead of the 2020 season’s start on 4th April, which teams they represent and their greatest accomplishments.

Arslan Ash 

• Current Team: vSlash esports and Red Bull esports 

• Country: Pakistan 

• Main: Kazumi 

Arslan "Arslan Ash" Siddique is undoubtedly one of the top Tekken 7 players ever. While he didn't make it out of the final rounds before the playoff bracket at EVO Japan 2020, which was filled with the overpowered Leroy (now nerfed), his accomplishments still put him at the top of our list. 

Last year, Arslan Ash made esports history by becoming the first-ever Tekken 7 player to win back-to-back EVO championships. At EVO Japan 2019, he made short work of Alexandre "AK" Laverez and at the EVO 2020 championship, despite VISA issues, he not only made it to the tournament but ploughed his way through the winner's bracket.  

Arslan "Arslan Ash" Siddique faced off against a powerhouse of the scene, Jae-Min "Knee" Bae, in an exciting grand final that ended 3-2. With the victory, he became the first back-to-back two-time EVO champion. 

Despite failing to make it to the playoff bracket at EVO Japan 2020, Arslan Ash already has one title to his name this year, as he managed to emerge victorious at Kumite in Tennessee 2020. 

Chikurin 

• Current Team: THY esports 

• Country: Japan 

• Mains: Akuma and Geese 

Yuta "Chikurin" Take hails from the legendary Echo Fox team that dominated the scene a few years ago. Now playing for THY esports, Chikurin is at his most frightening when he plays Akuma.  

While he played Leroy at EVO Japan 2020 (alongside seven other of the top eight players) and placed 5th-6th, his victory at the Tekken World Tour 2019 is still fresh in our minds. 

Chikurin has been one of the top Tekken 7 players for a few years now, and going into 2020 as the defending Tekken World Tour champion cements his place on this list. He is the King of the Iron Fist, after all.

Book 

• Current Team: Talon Esports 

• Country: Thailand 

• Mains: Jin and Leroy 

Nopparut "Book" Hempamorn has been one of the staple Tekken 7 pros since early 2018.  

Even so, he only won one tournament before 2020, the Thaiger Uppercut 2018 against the legendary, two-time EVO champion Jae-Min "Knee" Bae. However, Book started off 2020 with an absolute bang, becoming the EVO Japan 2020 champion with style.  

Book stayed in the upper bracket of the tournament all the way to the grand finals, where he faced off against Mikio in a thrilling match that went the distance.  

Book played as Leroy, while Mikio played Julia. As mentioned earlier in this article, Leroy was nerfed after the tournament, but since six of the top eight played Leroy, one cannot deny Book's momentum going forward into 2020. 

Knee 

• Current Team: Rox Dragons 

• Country: South Korea 

• Main: Steve 

Jae-Min "Knee" Bae is a legend of the Tekken scene. He is a two-time EVO champion and last year, he won five tournaments.  

He also placed second in the EVO 2019 championship, losing only to Arslan "Arslan Ash" Siddique who is the top Tekken 7 player on our list. With Steve as his main, Knee is an incredible player who will surely take home some titles again this year.  

Just like Arslan Ash, he didn't make it to the top eight at EVO Japan 2020, but his performance last year puts him firmly in the top Tekken 7 players in the world. 

Anakin 

• Current Team: Radiance and Red Bull esports 

• Country: America 

• Main: Jack-7 

Before Hoa "Anakin" Luu made his mark in Tekken 7 by winning the Texas Showdown 2018, we didn't really see Jack-7 in a final of a tournament. Anakin changed all that, building a reputation as one of the top Tekken 7 players out there.  

In 2018, he won two tournaments but 2019 was by far his best year yet. Last year, he placed first in the Northwest Majors XI, Texas Showdown 2019 and DreamHack Atlanta 2019.  

In addition, he was a top contender at both the EVO Championship 2019 (placing third as he got knocked out by Knee) and fourth at the Tekken World Tour finals, losing out against the finalist Ulsan. 

Final Thoughts 

These top Tekken 7 players will, without a doubt, make an impact on the scene in 2020. They all have a storied history and multiple top finishes under their belts.  

Honourable mentions go to Soo-hoon "Ulsan" Lim from Equinox Gaming and Sun-Woong "LowHigh" Yoon from UYU who just barely didn't make this list. Simply put, there's a whole lot of talent to look out for this year, but these are our picks for the top Tekken 7 players. 

The Tekken World Tour 2020 season kicks off with Tokyo Tekken Masters on 4-5th April.