Brooke Buckner and Hien Truong Advance to Finals at MB Hanoi Cup
Exciting Matches at the MB Hanoi Cup
Brooke Buckner triumphed over Kate Fahey to secure her spot in the women's singles final at the MB Hanoi Cup, the inaugural event of the PPA Tour Asia, held at the My Dinh Indoor Athletics Arena in Vietnam on April 4. After losing the first game narrowly at 9-11, Buckner displayed remarkable determination, winning the second game 11-6. She maintained her momentum in the final game, clinching victory with another 11-6 score, thus advancing to the final where she will compete against Kaitlyn Christian, who reached the final after defeating Chao Yi Wang in a three-game match.
In the men's singles, Hien Truong, who is not ranked in the top 50 of the DUPR standings, caused an upset by eliminating Federico Staksrud. Truong won the match with scores of 11-7, 4-11, and 11-6. He established an early lead in the deciding game at 8-1, but Staksrud fought back, narrowing the gap. A pivotal moment occurred when Staksrud was penalized for a fault, allowing Truong to secure the win on his ninth match point.
Truong will face his fellow countryman Hoang Nam Ly in the final, who advanced by defeating No. 4 seed Dylan Frazier with scores of 11-5 and 11-6. Ly expressed his excitement about performing well in his home country.
In mixed doubles, Christian will team up with Alshon to challenge the strong duo of Anna Leigh Waters and Ben Johns. Christian and Alshon secured their place in the final by overcoming the second-seeded pair of Anna Bright and Hayden Patriquin with scores of 11-9 and 11-8. Meanwhile, Waters and Johns defeated Tyra Black and Gabriel Tardio in straight games, setting the stage for an exciting final.
In the women's doubles final, the Annas, Waters and Bright, will compete against Tyra Black and Catherine Parenteau. The Annas reached the final after a convincing win over Tina Pisnik and Jessie Irvine, while Black and Parenteau triumphed over Kaitlyn Christian and Callie Smith.
For the men's doubles final, Johns will partner with Tardio to face Hayden Patriquin and Federico Staksrud. Johns and Tardio advanced by defeating Frazier and Eric Oncins, while Patriquin and Staksrud overcame Tama Shimabukuro and Jonathan Truong.