Lower-ranked Thuy Linh made a better start to her second Group P match against the world No. 1, remaining in the lead until the score was levelled at 16-16 by Tai.
However, the Vietnamese player then showed signs of exhaustion, while the Chinese Taipei star adjusted her playing style to win 21-16.
In the second set, Tai Tzu-ying was dominant, but Thuy Linh still bravely chased and only admitted defeat after scoring 11 points.
With one win and one loss, the Vietnamese shuttler is now second in Group P.
Earlier this morning, France’s Qi Xuefei, beaten by Thuy Linh in the opening match, breezed past Swiss athlete Sabrina Jaquet 2-0 (21-10, 21-14), whose chances of advancing to the quarterfinals officially evaporated following her two consecutive losses.
Qi Xuefei will be likely to sail through the group stage if she manages to beat world No. 1 Tai Tzu-ying in the last Group P match. Meanwhile, Vietnam’s Thuy Linh will advance to the quarterfinal round if she outplays Jaquet 2-0 and Qi Xuefei defeats Tai with the same score.
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Vietnamese swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien.
Later today, Vietnamese swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien will join 28 other competitors in the women’s 200m freestyle preliminary round, with the best 16 awarded semifinal slots.
Vien will swim in Heat 2 alongside seven athletes from Slovenia, the Russian Olympic Committee, Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand.
