Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s strongest male badminton players willcompete at the Princess Sirivannavari Thailand Masters which is scheduled forJanuary 9-14 in Bangkok.
In the singles event, Nguyen Tien Minh, the former world No 5, is the onlyVietnamese starting from the first main round. He will play Jason AnthonyHo-Shue of Canada in the first match.
His teammates Pham Cao Cuong and Le Duc Phat have to vie for their slots fromthe qualification round. Cuong is No 1 seed at the qualifier while Phat isseeded No 16.
In the doubles event, Bao Minh and Duong Bao Duc will play against Chan Tsz Kitand Chung Yonny of Hong Kong in their first main round.
The Masters also includes women’s singles and doubles and mixed doubles events.A total prize fund of 150,000 USD is up for grabs.
The Thai competition is the first tournament of the year for the Vietnameseplayers, who will then participate in the Asian team badminton championshipnext month in Malaysia.-VNA