Le Xuan Duc, an 18-year-old from Vietnam, won four straight matches in a single day at the Singapore Open, without losing a single game.
Duc had no seeding and no easy path into the main draw. He had to go through qualifying first. On Thursday, July 23, he beat Hoang Nguyen Anh 6-11, 11-7, 11-3 in the qualifying Round of 16, then beat Josh Barber 11-9, 11-5 in the qualifying quarterfinal. He then defeated Nguyen Hung Anh in the qualifying semifinal to book his spot in the main draw.
That evening, still on the same day, Duc walked onto Championship Court to face Hsieh Chen-An of Chinese Taipei in the Round of 32. He won 11-4, 11-0, not dropping a single point in the second game.
Four matches. One day. Zero games lost. Few qualifiers leave such an impression before the main draw has barely begun.
His run came to an end the next morning, Friday, July 24, when he faced eighth seed Marco Leung in the Round of 16. Leung won the first game 11-4. But Duc did not fold. He won the second game 11-6, forcing a decider. Leung closed it out 11-4 in the third to end Duc’s run.
Losing to a seeded player is not unusual for a qualifier. But taking a game off one is a different kind of result. It shows Duc was not simply riding a hot streak through easy opponents; he was good enough to trouble a player ranked well above him, on the very next day after four matches in a row.
For an 18-year-old with no seeding, that is a strong marker. It shows he can win when nothing is given to him, and he can compete even when a stronger opponent finally stands across the net.
The challenge now is whether Duc can carry this level into future tournaments and turn one remarkable day in Singapore into something much bigger.
Written By Harsh Ahlawat