Nguyễn Thùy Linh faces the toughest draw in her first tournament of 2026

Numerous obstacles are set for Nguyễn Thùy Linh at the Super 750 India Open beginning January 13.

Vietnam’s top badminton player, Nguyễn Thùy Linh, will kick off the season by competing in the 2026 Super 750 India Open held in New Delhi, India, from January 13 to 18.

Not being seeded in a high-profile Super 750 event, Thùy Linh must face strong opponents early on. Indeed, the draw has placed the "Vietnamese Badminton Beauty" in an extremely tough bracket.

In her opening match, Thùy Linh will go up against a former world champion - Pusarla Venkata Sindhu. The two are well acquainted, and even the Vietnamese player won both encounters last year, yet this rematch clearly places Thùy Linh as the underdog.

Though PV Sindhu’s performance can be inconsistent, when she is in form, she remains a top-tier player. Just last week, the richest female badminton star shone brilliantly at the Super 1000 Malaysia Open: she defeated Sung Shuo-yun and young talent Tomoka Miyazaki in straight games, then led 21-11 in the first game against Akane Yamaguchi before the latter retired, securing a semifinal spot and eventually losing only to Wang Zhiyi.

This week, Sindhu will also benefit from home crowd support. A tough match lies ahead for Thùy Linh.

If she overcomes the host nation’s pride, Thùy Linh is likely to face the world’s number two Wang Zhiyi in the round of 16. Should she cause a major upset against Wang, Tomoka Miyazaki or Supanida Katethong await the Phú Thọ native in the quarterfinals.

Two other strong contenders in the same half of the draw reaching the semifinals are the Tokyo Olympic champion - Chen Yufei and Han Yue.

In the past, Nguyễn Thùy Linh has never advanced past the first round of the India Open. Last season, she narrowly lost to Yeo Jia Min.

After the India Open, Thùy Linh will head to Indonesia to compete in the 2026 Super 500 Indonesia Masters (January 20-25).