Vietnamese badminton rising star, 14-year-old, climbs 650 places in the world rankings

An unprecedented leap forward in the career of the player born in 2011.

The promising young talent of Vietnamese badminton - Nguyễn Thị Thu Huyền, has made a rapid ascent on the latest BWF (Badminton World Federation) rankings updated on December 23.

Thu Huyền rose 650 spots on the rankings, officially entering the world top 400 at position 392. Her points surged from 210 to 3,010.

According to BWF points, Thu Huyền is currently Vietnam's fourth-ranked badminton player, behind Nguyễn Thùy Linh (22nd), Vũ Thị Trang (137th), and Bùi Bích Phương (317th). Even the current top Vietnamese female singles player, Trần Thị Phương Thúy, is ranked only 431st, having dropped 9 places in the latest update.

Nguyễn Thị Thu Huyền's meteoric rise in the world badminton rankings stems from her impressive performance at the 2025 Bangladesh International Challenge. Starting from the qualifiers due to her low ranking, she easily overcame two opponents, including the second seed from the host country, to reach the main draw.

In the main draw, the 2011-born player excelled, consecutively defeating strong competitors such as the 4th seed Joanne Ng (Malaysia) and 6th seed Ishita Negi (India). She only lost to Tanvi Reddy Andluri (India) in the semifinals, securing a bronze medal at this international event.

This is also Thu Huyền's best achievement in professional competition. Previously, the 14-year-old star made waves in youth tournaments: Runner-up at the 2024 U17 & U15 Asian Junior Championships - marking the first time a Vietnamese athlete reached the final in the girls’ singles category at an Asian junior event; Runner-up at the 2025 International Series Youth Tournament- and won 2 gold medals at the 2025 National Junior Age Group Badminton Championships.

This week, Nguyễn Thị Thu Huyền will remain in Bangladesh to compete in the 2025 Bangladesh International Series. Recently, she advanced past the qualifiers, defeated Anvitha Vijay (India) in the round of 32, and will face the 7th seed from Singapore, Sng Ying Shuen (world rank 245), around noon on December 24 (Vietnam time).