PETALING JAYA: Pearly Tan–M. Thinaah may be the world No. 2 women’s doubles pair, but the Asian Championships has never been an easy hunting ground for them.
In matches held at the Ningbo Olympic Center yesterday, Pearly–Thinaah defeated Hong Kong’s Fan Ka Yan–Yau Mau Ying 21–14, 21–11 in 31 minutes.
It was a clear relief for the pair, who had suffered first-round exits in the last two editions since 2024.
Last year, they lost to South Korea’s Kim Hye-jeong–Kong Hee-yong, while the year before, their campaign was ended by Japan’s Mayu Matsumoto–Wakana Nagahara.
“I think at the start, there were a few simple things we needed to take note of, things that shouldn’t have happened during the match. But after discussing with each other, we refocused on those basics and managed to perform better,” said Thinaah in an interview with Badminton Asia.
Thinaah added that they are still trying to regain their tournament rhythm, having not competed for more than three weeks since the All-England in March.
“Like Pearly mentioned, our last tournament was the All-England, so we had about a month before coming into the Asian Championships.
“We’re trying to get back our tournament feeling and rebuild our confidence on court. Hopefully, this performance can also motivate the rest of the Malaysian team competing here,” she added.
Pearly–Thinaah will take on Taiwan’s Hsu Yin-hui–Lin Jhih-yun in the second round today.
On paper, the Malaysians are expected to have the upper hand over the world No. 12 pair, having beaten them twice last year at the Japan Masters and the French Open.
Men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia–Soh Wooi Yik also made a strong start, easing past Taiwan’s Chiu Hsiang-chieh-Wang Chi-lin 21–15, 21–15 in 38 minutes to begin their title defence.
They will next face home pair Hu Keyuan–Lin Xiangyi.
However, it was disappointment for world No. 6 pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun, who went down 18–21, 18–21 to China’s He Jiting–Ren Xiangyu.
Earlier, Wan Arif Wan Junaidi–Yap Roy King let their advantage slip against Taiwan’s Lee Fang-chih–Lee Fang-jen, losing 17–21, 21–17, 20–22.
