File pix of Malaysia’s women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah in action against Indonesia’s Lanny Tria Mayasari-Ribka Sugiarto during the quarter-finals of Asia Team Championships at Setia Alam Convention Centre. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: Women’s doubles shuttlers Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah are bracing themselves for long duels in the Malaysian Masters again.
A year ago, Pearly-Thinaah caught the eye with their tremendous fighting spirit and determination in withstanding lengthy rallies in matches en-route to reaching the final of the home event.
The pair eventually went down in three close games against South Korea’s world No. 2 Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee in the title match but won the hearts of the fans in the Axiata Arena with their battling show.
This time, world No. 14 Pearly-Thinaah are preparing for another exhausting tournament when action begin on Tuesday.
"We cannot predict much on how the matches are going to be this time," said Thinaah after a training session at the Axiata Arena yesterday.
"Whatever it is, we have to prepare ourselves for the worst."
Pearly said: "The women’s doubles competition is quite tough now.
"All the top pairs are quite consistent. We want to focus on ourselves and play our best."
Pearly-Thinaah are looking forward to returning to competitive action after last playing in the Asian Championships last month in Ningbo, China.
