HO CHI MINH CITY - Two Vietnamese players topped the ranking after the first day of the World Cup in Ho chi minh, in the top sixteen were eleven home players and five Koreans and Sang Dae Lee, the player who finished with the highest average (1.575) and the highest run (eleven) was only the first on the reserve list and finally advanced. Two players who didn't finish over one average in the top sixteen, advanced through the back door. The level was already very high in the Nguyen Stadium in Ho Chi Minh where the stands were not that crowded on this first day, but here thousands of spectators are expected for the final days.
The baptism of fire on the first day predicts a fabulous tournament. The day was launched with many Nguyens at the tables in the sporting hall that even bears that name, with already some strong Koreans among the home players, an excellent start of the Korean lady Bo Ra Jeong (30-8 in 23 against Minh That Lien), but in her second she stumbled over Tuan Khanh Nguyen (30-7 loss in eighteen innings), so she did not make it for tomorrow's round.
Tuan Khanh Nguyen eventually was the strongest of the players with two wins in the groups followed by Quang Dinh Hai, the Korean Keon Hui Cho, the third Vietnamese Phuc Thien Le and another Korean Jung Min Lim.
Thirteen players finished with two wins, Jeong Il Sung advanced with three match points to the second day and Huu Thanh Nguyen, Ngoc Long Nguyen with one win in the group.
Sang Dae Lee had a great start when he bested Xuan Chau Huynh in Group C with 30-9 in 12 innings (run 11), but he had a minor second match: Lee was beaten by Thanh Tien Le, the final number six of the day, 30-22 (21).
Jung Min Lim sparkled with thirty in fifteen vs Thanh Binh Nguyen (30-26) and in Group I were two winners, Phan Thanh Le and Seung Gu Kang, with a promising 1.666 average.
Tomorrow, Tuesday, on the second day, Japanese Namiko Hayashi and Dutchman Raymon Groot, who did so well in the Porto World Cup, enter the tournament in Ho Chi Minh.
The top sixteen after day one:
1 Tuan Khanh Nguyen (Vietnam) 4-1.395-6
2 Quang Hai Dinh (Vietnam) 4-1.363-9
3 Keon Hwi Cho (Korea) 4-1.363-6
4 Phuc Thien Le (Vietnam) 4-1.333-8
5 Jung Min Lim (Korea) 4-1.276-8
6 Thanh Tien Le (Vietnam) 4-1.250-7
7 Ngoc Tri Nguyen (Vietnam) 4-1.200-9
8 Giang Thach Chu (Vietnam) 4-1.200-6
9 Seung Gu Kang (Korea) 4-1.132-8
10 Duc Minh Tran (Vietnam) 1.016-7
11 In Seok Kang (Korea) 4-1.000-6
12 Minh Phat Vu (Vietnam) 4-0.967-5
13 An Toan Nguyen (Vietnam) 4-0.952-6
14 Sung Il Jeong (Korea) 3-1.132-9
15 Huu Thanh Nguyen (Vietnam) 2-1.056-9
16 Ngoc Long Nguyen (Vietnam) 2-1.000-10.
