Sweet revenge: M. Thinaah-Pearly Tan beat reigning Malaysian Open champions Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto of Japan 21-18, 21-19 in 57 minutes.
KUALA LUMPUR: Could Malaysia’s Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah make history by becoming the first Malaysian women’s doubles pair to reach the final of the Indian Open?
The chance is now wide open after Pearly-Thinaah made a quick redemption by beating reigning Malaysian Open champions Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto of Japan 21-18, 21-19 in 57 minutes in New Delhi yesterday.
They were trading blow for blow before the Malaysians showed stronger determination to pull away for a win.
Their semis spot is a promising achievement, especially after their first round exit at the Malaysian Open last week.
They now have a second attempt to reach the final.
They also had reached the semis in the 2023 edition but their dream to reach the final in India was dashed by another Japanese pair Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida.
Said Thinaah: “We’re happy with today’s match, especially after a disappointing week last week. We just wanted to leave that in the past and come back fresh and renewed this week.”
Since the Indian Open’s inception in 1973, no Malaysian women’s doubles pair has advanced to the final.
To make history, they will need to summon all their strength and experience when they face South Korea’s Kim Hye-jong-Kong Hee-yong in today’s semi-finals
This promises to be an intriguing clash, as Hye-jong and Hee-yong, who have just teamed up, will face Pearly and Thinaah for the first time.
In terms of rankings, Pearly and Thinaah have the psychological edge, sitting comfortably at No. 7 in the world, compared to their South Korean opponents, ranked No. 49.
Hye-jong however has beaten the Malaysians several times with her former teammate Jeong Na-yeun.
Thinaah and Pearly believe they cannot afford to be complacent and must make full use of the advice given by their coach Rosman Razak.
“They (coaches) keep reminding us to focus on our game plan and strategy so that we don’t lose ourselves, because in the past, we’ve been losing focus. The reminder from our coach will help us to stay focused,” said Thinaah.
RESULTS
QUARTER-FINALS
Men’s singles: Lee Cheuk Yiu (Hkg) bt Chou Tien-chen (Tpe) 21-15, 21-8.
Men’s doubles: Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani (Mas) bt Lee Fang-chih-Lee Fang-jen (Tpe) 21-11, 21-17; Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (Mas) bt Kittinupong Kedren-Dechapol Puavaranukroh (Tha) 21-18, 21-18; Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) bt Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang (Chn) 12-21, 22-20, 23-21.
Women’s singles: An Se-young (Kor) bt Yeo Jia Min (Sin) 21-11, 21-12; Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) bt Han Yue (Chn) 21-17, 21-16; Tomoka Miyazaki (Jpn) bt Wang Zhiyi (Chn) 21-16, rtd.
Women’s doubles: Arisa Igarashi-Ayako Sakuramoto (Jpn) bt Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning (Chn) 21-15, 21-19; Li Yijing-Luo Xumin (Chn) bt Yeung Nga Ting-Yeung Pui Lam (Hkg) 21-12, 21-17; Pearly Tan-M.Thinaah (Mas) bt Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto (Jpn) 21-18, 21-19; Kim Hye-jeong-Kong hee-yong (Kor) bt Baek Hana- Lee Soo-hee (Kor) 21-23, 21-19, 21-18.
SECOND ROUND
Men’s singles: Lin Chun-yi (Tpe) bt Christo Popov (Fra) 25-23, 21-11; Jonatan Christie (Ina) bt Su Li-yang (Tpe) 21-16, 21-11.
Men’s doubles: Jin Yong-Kang Min-hyuk (Kor) bt Chiu Hsiang-cheh-Wang Chi-lin (Tpe) 21-15, 19-21, 21-17; Goh Sze Fei-Nur IzzuddIn Rumsani (Mas) bt Wan Arif Junaidi-Yap Roy King (Mas) 25-23, 21-19; Lee Fang-chih-Lee Fang-jen (Tpe) bt Liu Kuang-heng-Yang Po-han (Tpe) 21-16, 20-22, 21-12; Kittinupong Kedren-Dechapol Puavaranukroh (Tha) bt Fajar Alfian-rian Ardianto (Ina) 24-22, 16-21, 21-16.
Women’s singles: Pornpawee Chocuwong (Tha) bt Gao Fangjie (Chn) 16-21, 21-16, 21-15; Han Yue (Chn) bt Kaoru Sugiyama (Jpn) 21-12, 21-9.
Women’s doubles: Yeung Nga Ting-Yeung Pui Lam (Hkg) bt Hsu Yin-hui-Lin Jhihyun (Tpe) 21-23, 21-15, 21-17; Li Yijing-Luo Xumin (Chn) bt Ashwini Bhat-Shikha Gautam (Ind) 21-7, 21-10; Arisa Igarashi-Ayako Sakuramoto (Jpn) bt Ornnicha Jongsathapornparn-Sukitta Suwachai (Tha) 21-11, 21-9.