Duc Phat wins shock at Vietnam International Challenger

Amidst the cheers at the Tay Ho District Gymnasium, Duc Phat shouted to celebrate, then put down his racquet and joined hands to thank the audience. After leaving the field, he wiped the sweat from his face and went to a corner to vomit.

The 25-year-old player put all his heart into the match that the winning door seemed to completely tilt to Heo Kwang Hee, the Korean ranked 39th in the world and the number one seed in the men's singles event. "I don't believe it's possible to win," he told MetaSports.

Duc Phat ranked 242nd in the world, the lowest among the host players, had to qualify for the Vietnam International Challenger 2023. In the first game, standing in the opposite direction of the wind and lights, he lost quickly. 7-12.

But Duc Phat's journey has not stopped. He turned the game around with a flexible move to win 21-15, while Hee suddenly lost accuracy, making many mistakes.

Dramatic third game. Hee only has a series of three to four points to lose once. At one point, the Korean player led nine points (14-5). "At that time, I told myself to try not to give up, clinging to every point," Duc Phat said. Suddenly happened, when Vietnamese players repeatedly dropped or hit the bridge to score points. The cheers of the home audience as well as the words of encouragement from the coach helped him to hit more and more confident. After shortening the score to 12-16, he set up a nine-point streak to win.

After the old general Nguyen Tien Minh and the new national number one player Nguyen Hai Dang were eliminated, Duc Phat became the only representative of Vietnam to remain in the men's singles event. In the quarterfinals, he will meet Huang Yu Kai.