Vietnamese pickleball famous person Hoang Nam Ly’s meteoric rise in skilled pickleball continues. Contemporary off his triumph on the PPA Asia 1000 MB Hanoi Cup 2026 males’s singles, Vietnam’s former tennis No. 1 now sits only one spot behind the game’s most adorned participant, Ben Johns, on this planet singles rankings.
With 3,100 amassed factors, Nam has damaged into the highest 15 for the primary time, peaking at 14th. It’s a exceptional ascent for the 28-year-old, who solely transitioned from tennis to pickleball in early 2025.
On the Hanoi match, Hoang Nam Ly shocked world No. 4 Christian Alshon within the quarterfinals, rallying from a troublesome second set to win in a tiebreak. He then defeated compatriot Truong Vinh Hien within the remaining to safe his second main singles crown on the PPA Asia Tour—together with his first coming in Hangzhou, China in 2025, the place he toppled Hong Kong’s Jack Wong Hong-kit within the championship match.
Ly’s fast success is rooted in his tennis pedigree. His footwork, exact ball management, and sharp reflexes have translated seamlessly to pickleball, making him a formidable pressure and Vietnam’s undisputed primary.
He now trails solely Ben Johns, the 27-year-old American who has outlined the game with a report 21 Triple Crowns—successful singles, doubles, and blended doubles on the identical occasion. Whereas Johns stays world No.1 in doubles, his singles rating has dipped to thirteenth with 3,587 factors, as he has restricted his singles appearances this season. His final remaining got here on the Mesa Cup in February.
Vietnam’s rise in pickleball doesn’t cease with Hoang Nam Ly. Truong Vinh Hien, who shocked world No. 2 Federico Staksrud within the semifinals earlier than falling to Ly within the remaining, has climbed to seventeenth on this planet with 2,500 factors.
With Hoang Nam Ly closing in on Johns and Hien breaking by, Vietnam is quick turning into a brand new energy within the world pickleball panorama.
