KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s top women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah reignited the nation's hopes at the All-England by advancing to the second round amid a mass exit of national players.
However, the fifth-seeded duo gave both the coaching staff and fans a scare when they lost the first game to Taiwan’s Teng Chun-hsun-Yang Chu-yun.
They bounced back in the second game after receiving guidance from coach Rosman Razak and coaching director Rexy Mainaky, forcing a deciding rubber game before sealing a 19-21, 21-15, 21-13 victory.
Their win made them the second Malaysian pair to reach the second round, following the success of mixed doubles duo Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jamie.
Pearly and Thinaah will now face Indonesians Apriyani Rahayu-Siti Fadia Ramadhanti in the second round on Thursday.
It was a different script for mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei as they also suffered an early exit, once again at the hands of world No. 110 duo Rehan Kusharjanto-Gloria Widjaja.
Despite a strong start in the first game, Tang Jie and Ee Wei struggled to maintain their momentum in the second, forcing the match into a deciding rubber game.
After a grueling 66-minute battle, their hopes of a deep run in the tournament were dashed as they fell 21-18, 20-22, 11-21.
This marks their second consecutive defeat to the Indonesian pair within a week following their second-round exit at the Orleans Masters in Paris last week.
