PETALING JAYA: The disappointment on the faces of Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah said it all after their semi-final defeat at the All-England.
The world No. 2 pair went down fighting 17-21, 18-21 to South Korea’s Baek Ha-na-Lee Soo-hee in a 68-minute battle in Birmingham on Saturday.
Despite the loss, the Malaysians can take pride in ending the country’s 19-year wait for a women’s doubles semi-final appearance, last achieved by Wong Pei Tty-Chin Ee Hui in 2007.
Coach Rosman Razak believes the defeat will only make them stronger, echoing the saying that falling down is temporary but getting up is permanent.
“We learn and need to stay positive in this defeat,” said Rosman.
“Together with Pearly-Thinaah, we will keep learning and return to our training process to see what can be improved.
“There is one thing that I know and believe, Pearly and Thinaah will do it one day (win the All-England title).”
Rosman also applauded the pair for the hard work they put in behind the scenes.
“What some people don’t know is that despite all the pressure, Pearly and Thinaah always give their maximum effort in training and competitions.
“Winning or losing is part of the process.”
While pleased with their run to the semi-finals, Thinaah admitted they could have turned the match around had they played more aggressively.
“This time, we were more defensive. During those moments we should have counter-attacked more, but credit to our opponents for playing well.
“They were patient and their attacking play was also aggressive.
“We have to take note of this and come back stronger.”
The semi-final heartbreak in the prestigious tournament could well fuel Pearly-Thinaah to make an even stronger impact in upcoming major events such as the Asian Championships in Ningbo, China (April 7–12), the Uber Cup Finals in Horsens, Denmark (April 24–May 3), the World Championships in New Delhi (Aug 17–23), and the Asian Games in Japan (Sept 19–Oct 4).
Meanwhile, world No. 2 pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik made it a good day for Malaysia by reaching the final after defeating China’s Chen Boyang-Liu Yi 21-11, 21-19 to set up a meeting with Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae of South Korea.
It is their third final appearance in the All-England having lost in the last two occasions at the 2019 and 2024 editions.
Malaysia last won the All-England men’s doubles title through Koo Kien Kiat-Tan Boon Heong in 2007.
FINALS
Men’s singles: Lin Chun-yi (Tpe) bt Lakshya Sen (Ind) 21-15, 22-20.
Mixed doubles: Ye Hong Wei-Nicole Chan (Tpe) bt Thom Gicquel-Delphine Delrue (Fra) 21-19, 21-18.
SEMI-FINALS
Men’s singles: Lin Chun-yi (Tpe) bt Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Tha) 21-14, 18-21, 21-16; Lakshya Sen (Ind) bt Victor Lai (Can) 21-16, 18-21, 21-15.
Men’s doubles: Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (Mas) bt Chen Boyang-Liu Yi (Chn) 21-11, 21-19; Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) bt Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin (Ina) 21-19, 21-13.
Women’s singles: An Se-young (Kor) bt Chen Yufei (Chn) 20-22, 21-9, 21-12; Wang Zhiyi (Chn) bt Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) 21-15, 21-19.
Women’s doubles: Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee (Kor) bt Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah (Mas) 21-17, 21-18; Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning (Chn) bt Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian (Chn) 18-21, 21-17, 22-20.
Mixed doubles: Thom Gicquel-Delphine Delrue (Fra) bt Guo Xinwa-Chen Fang-hui (Chn) 11-21, 21-18, 21-12; Ye Hong Wei-Nicole Chan (Tpe) bt Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) 16-21, 21-15, 21-13.
