Vietnamese badminton star Nguyen Thuy Linh's run at the China Open ended in the round of 16 on midday, 23/7, as she fell 1-2 to Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon. Despite winning the first set, Thuy Linh could not hold her advantage against her experienced opponent.

The match saw Thuy Linh, currently ranked world number 27, face Intanon, world number 7. Thuy Linh had a favorable head-to-head record against Intanon, having won two of their three previous encounters, and was expected to deliver a strong performance after her 2-1 victory over Japan's Hina Akechi in the first round.

The first set was a tight battle for every point, with Intanon initially leading 11-9. However, after a short break, Thuy Linh regained her confidence, executing precise shots. She scored five consecutive points to take a 16-12 lead, then continued her strong play to win the set 21-17 in 16 minutes.

In the second set, Thuy Linh lost her momentum, allowing Intanon to establish significant leads of 4-1 and then 9-2. Despite efforts to sustain rallies and narrow the gap to 8-11 and later 13-15, Intanon displayed her class and experience. She delivered difficult shots, forcing Thuy Linh into tough defenses and unforced errors, ultimately winning the set 21-16.

Thuy Linh collapses after a tricky shot by Intanon during their round of 16 match at the Victor China Open 2026 international badminton tournament, held at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium, Changzhou city, Jiangsu province, China, on midday, 23/7. *Screenshot*

The deciding set began with both players trading points. However, Thuy Linh again made errors, allowing Intanon to lead 9-6 and then 11-9. Following advice from coach Ngo Trung Dung to play patiently, avoid pushing shuttles to the back, and instead draw them to the net to wear down her opponent, Thuy Linh scored three consecutive points to regain a narrow lead at 12-11 and then 13-12.

Despite the brief resurgence, the player from Phu Tho committed numerous unforced errors, service errors, and netted returns. The match slipped away, allowing Intanon to lead 18-14 before securing the set 21-15 after Thuy Linh hit the shuttle into the net.

Although she could not advance further, by reaching the round of 16, Thuy Linh earned 6,000 USD in prize money and 5,400 ranking points. She plans to continue competing in the Asian tour, followed by training for the upcoming Asiad.

Intanon is an icon of Thai women's badminton, having won the World Championship in 2013 at 18 years old. She rose to world number one and claimed many titles, including the BWF World Tour, Asian Championship, ASIAD runner-up, and five SEA Games gold medals. At 31, Intanon maintains high form, evidenced by her Malaysia Masters victory and current world number 7 ranking.

Thuy Linh is Vietnam's number one female badminton player, with seven consecutive national individual badminton championship titles. She has also won the Vietnam Open three consecutive times since 2022 and participated in the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympics. In the Super 300 series, she was a four-time runner-up at the German Open 2024, 2025, Canada Open 2025, and Korea Masters 2025.

The China Open 2026 is one of the world's most prestigious badminton tournaments, part of the BWF World Tour Super 1000 series. Held from 21-26/7 in Jiangsu, China, it gathers all top players to compete for a total prize fund of 2 million USD. Had she reached the quarterfinals, Thuy Linh would have earned 11,000 USD.

Duc Dong