Minh's performance in recent competitions has left him with a total score of 37,620 points.

The world's top three players are Chen Long of China, Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark and Lin Dan of China.

Among women, Vietnamese player Vu Thi Trang dropped eight spots to 56th in the world singles rankings.

In other news, Vietnamese players are likely to meet challenges in the coming Asian Badminton Championships, to be held in China from April 21 to 26, because they are not seeded at the event.

According to the draw, Olympian Minh will meet number three seed Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei, while Trang will face number one seed Li Xuerui of China in the second round.

In the men's doubles, Duong Bao Duc and Nguyen Hoang Nam will play against Kim Ki Jung and Kim Sa Rang of South Korea in the second round.

Vu Thi Trang and Nguyen Thi Sen will meet Ma Jin and Tang Yuanting of China in the first round of the women's doubles matches. Dao Manh Thang and Pham Nhu Thao will meet Paul Jefferson Vivas and Jessie Francisco of the Philippines in the first round of the mixed doubles matches.

VNS