VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam’s tennis star Ly Hoang Nam teamed up with India’s Sumit Nagal to win the historic Wimbledon boys’ doubles title on July 12 - one of the most outstanding milestones Nam has achieved in his tennis career so far.

Ly Hoang Nam (left) and his Indian partner Sumit Nagal celebrate after winning the Wimbledon boys’ doubles title.

Here are the five most noticeable things about this talented tennis player.

1. The youngest to win a national title

The 2012 National Tennis Championships marked a turning point in Nam’s tennis career as he picked up his first national title, making himself the youngest national champion in Vietnam’s tennis history at the age of 15. The record was previously held by elder Do Minh Quan, who lost at the hands of Nam in the semifinals. Nam’s 2012 victory was said to be incomplete without facing prodigy Nguyen Hoang Thien; however, a year later, Nam officially overcame Hoang Thien to affirm his title.

2. The first Vietnamese to win an Asian tennis title

In 2013, Ly Hoang Nam made Vietnam proud as he suddenly claimed the boys’ singles gold medal at the 2nd Asian Youth Games in Nanjing, China - an exceptional achievement that went beyond expectations of both the expertise circle and Nam himself. Nam produced a spectacular uprising against Zosimo Mendoza of the Philippines to win the final match with a score of 2-1 after over three hours of play. It was the first Asian-level title for Vietnamese tennis after four decades of waiting.

3. Making top 15 in ITF junior rankings

Tennis used to be in the group of events with slow growth since Vietnam’s international sports reintegration. However, within just two years, Ly Hoang Nam constantly established new milestones for national tennis regarding the ITF junior rating. After conquering the top 100 (rated 95th) in October 2013, Nam went on to make the top 50 (49th) in March 2014 and then top 15 (14th) in April this year. The Tay Ninh-born player even made it through to his best rating ever - 12th place - in the ITF junior boys’ rankings announced the following month.

4. Competing in all four Junior Grand Slam tournaments

Nguyen Hoang Thien was the only Vietnamese player before Ly Hoang Nam ever to compete in a Junior Grand Slam tournament - the 2012 Australian Open. Within 2015 alone, Nam surpassed his elder’s milestone by winning the right to play in all the four Grand Slam tourneys for juniors including the Australian Open, the French Open (Roland Garros), the Wimbledon and the upcoming US Open.

5. Winning Wimbledon boys’ doubles event

Nam’s extraordinary victory in the Wimbledon boys’ doubles event will surely be remembered as a historic milestone contributing to promoting Vietnamese tennis to international friends. Like the case of super swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, who won eight gold medals and broke eight records at the 28th SEA Games in Singapore, Nam’s constant success is expected to help revive Vietnamese tennis.

Nhan Dan