In the first set, eighth seeded Minh sprung out to a comfortable lead of 14/8 before Varma tied it up 19/19; however, with relentless quality and drive, Minh came back triumphantly to win the set 21/19.
Minh continued to dominate the second set, leading 18/13 before finishing the competition with the identical score of 21/19.
Minh will face a formidable quarter-final match today against his arch-opponent, Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei, who currently stands firmly atop the BWF world rankings. In the past, the Vietnamese player conceded losses in nine out of ten games against world no. 1 Lee.
