Vietnamese badminton player approaches world’s top 20

Linh defeated Esther Shi in the round of 32 and Iris Wang in the round of 16. The quarterfinals saw Linh going up against world number seven Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand. Despite winning the first set, Linh let Intanon make a comeback to win 2-1 and was eliminated.

After the tournament, Linh added 3,850 points to her total and climbed three places to 23rd on the Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings, the highest position of her career.

Last week, Linh earned 5,040 points after advancing to the quarterfinals of the Canada Open. Since the start of 2023, Linh has jumped 28 places.

This position solidified Linh as the number one badminton player in Vietnam, sixth in Southeast Asia and 18th in Asia. She ranks behind Thailand’s Itanon (7th in the world), Pornpawee Chochuwong (10th), Busanan Ongbamrungphan (13th) and Supanida Katethong (16th), and Indonesia’s Mariska Tunjung (8th).

The number one female badminton player is still Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi.

In 2023, Linh also won the Vietnam International Challenge and finished second at the Thailand International Challenge. In late August, she will compete in the world championships in Denmark, then on to China for Asian Games 19 in September.

With her current position and form, Linh is expected to be eligible to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.