Nguyen Tien Minh while training in Myanmar.— Photo 24h.com.vn

HA NOI (VNS)— The SEA Games badminton draw selected Vietnamese top player Nguyen Tien Minh to start in the quarter-final round at the Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar today.

As the No 1 seed, Minh will play Avihingsanon Suppaya of Thailand, an unseeded player, who unexpectedly defeated Chong Wei Feng of Malaysia in the first round. Chong came into the tournament at No 3 and is ranked No 15 in the world.

Minh, ranked No 8 in the world, is set to play Chong in the quarter-final match.

"In theory, Suppanyu is a weaker rival, compared to Chong. However, I have not met Suppanyu in the past, so I think it will not be easy to defeat him if he maintains his performance against Chong," said Minh, who later added that he was confident he would win.

Minh is expected to take home his first SEA Games gold medal this year. – VNS