Tien Minh wins US Open Prix Gold 2013 championship title

 Top Vietnamese badminton star Nguyen Tien Minh triumphed 2-1 over his Chinese rival, Wing Ki Wong, after 1 hour 25 minutes in the US Open Prix Gold’s final clash on July 14, winning the championship title. 

It was a hard-fought battle for Minh, ranked ninth worldwide, against Wong, ranked 15th by the Badminton World Federation (BWF).

A large crowd of Vietnamese expatriates in Orange County, California came to support this year’s third-seeded. The opening set was unfavourable for Tien Minh as he lost 18-21. The 30- year-old Vietnamese athlete fought hard in the second set, forcing his rival to surrender after a series of attacks in the last minutes, ending it 21-17.

Both players entered the final set, competing in a tit-for-tat strategy and strong smashes to gain every point. Thanks to his international experiences, Minh overwhelmed his rival 21-18 in the end, earning him the valuable title.

This victory was a milestone for Minh’s carrer since 2010, when he pocketed gold medals at Grand Prix Gold in Thailand and Taiwan (China), together with the championships at Grand Prix in Australia.

It was the first time Minh has won the US Open Prix Gold championship. In the US Open Prix Gold 2011 tournament, he lost to Sho Sasaki in the final round.

The Grand Prix Gold is the highest tournament in the Grand Prix system of BWF. The victory earned Nguyen Tien Minh a USD9,000 cash prize and 7,000 points to his world ranking, pushing him up to the 8th position for the men’s singles category. This also will be an advantage for him in the draw for the world championship to be held in August./.

(CPV)