SEA Games: [Athlete Name] Begins Gold Quest

The draw for the doubles (men, women, mixed) and singles (men, women) badminton events of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games took place on December 10. The opponent of Nguyen Thuy Linh (22nd in the world) in women’s singles is now known. The Vietnamese number one will face Ni Kadek Dhinda Amartya Pratiwi (Indonesia, 82nd in the world).

Nguyen Thuy Linh is the 4th seed.

In this competition, Thùy Linh is seeded n°4. The Vietnamese athlete is considered stronger than her Indonesian opponent. Questioned by the newspaper Adolescent the coach of the Vietnamese badminton team, Ngô Trung Dũng, said that Thùy Linh had a good chance of winning and qualifying for the next round, because the player born in 1997 has a higher technical level and greater experience than her opponent.

The doubles and singles events mentioned above started at 10am. Nguyen Thuy Linh entered the fray at noon.

Besides Thuy Linh, the women’s draw also includes veteran player Nguyen Thi Trang. Nguyen Tien Minh’s wife will face a formidable opponent, Supanida Katethong (seeded No. 3, 12th in the world), at 10:30 a.m.

In the men’s individual draw, Le Duc Phat will face the Indonesian Zaki Ubaidillah (48th in the world) at noon. For his part, Nguyen Hai Dang will face Indonesian Alwi Farhan (seeded No. 2, 17th in the world) at 1 p.m.

In women’s doubles, two pairs of athletes competed: Pham Thi Dieu Ly and Pham Thi Khanh, as well as Bui Bich Phuong and Vu Thi Trang. Unfortunately, Tran Thi Phuong Thuy was injured before the team event (December 6) and was unable to recover in time. The management therefore had to call on Vu Thi Trang to replace her.

The pair Dieu Ly – Pham Thi Khanh will face Ngar Myar – Eaint Chit Phoo (Myanmar) at 2 p.m. Bich Phuong – Vu Thi Trang will face the formidable Thai pair, Ornnicha Jongsathapornparn – Sukitta Suwachai (seeded number 3), at 3 p.m.

Earlier, in the team event which began on December 7, the Vietnamese women’s badminton team was eliminated early after losing 1-3 to Malaysia. Nguyen Thuy Linh was the first and only player to win a match, defeating the Malaysian women’s team number one, Karupathevan Letshanaa.