PETALING JAYA: Women’s doubles shuttler Pearly Tan showed no signs of discomfort on court as she marked her return with a win in the opening round of the Singapore Open yesterday.
Pearly and partner M. Thinaah were forced to go a little longer on their return but came from behind to win 20-22, 21-16, 21-15 against Taiwan’s Hu Ling-fang-Jheng Yu-chieh.
The tourney in Lion City is world No. 2 Pearly-Thinaah’s first outing since the Asian Championships early last month. Pearly had missed the Uber Cup and also the Malaysian Masters last week to recover from a back injury.
Pearly was glad to be back on court, and more importantly, relieved that she could play through the entire match without worrying about her injury.
“Of course, I feel relieved and happy to be back on court and finish the match safely,” said Pearly.
“I’m fully recovered now and I hope to keep this momentum going in each match.”
Pearly’s return to action was cautioned by head coach Rosman Razak, but Pearly insisted she is feeling fit to compete after showing progress in training.
However, Pearly admitted that the pair need time to get their rhythm back, but their long-standing partnership helps ease things.
“Overall, we’re not so happy with our performance because there are things we could improve on and do better, especially on our strategy and rotations.
“We have been training for some time for a comeback. We don’t want it to take too long during tournaments but our communication and support for each other helps.”
Thinaah echoed her partner’s comments, saying, “Some shots are still a little rusty and our execution could be better.”
“Thankfully, we have good communication on court, which helps us get through crucial points.”
In the second round, Pearly-Thinaah will face either Thailand’s Benyapa Aimsaar-Nuntakarn Aimsaard or Canadian pair Jackie Dent-Crystal Lai.
Meanwhile, mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei also advanced to the second round after they defeated compatriots Hoo Pang Ron-Lai Pei Jing yesterday.
Third seed Tang Jie-Ee Wei did not face much challenge to win 21-16, 21-19 in 40 minutes against the newly formed independent pair.
Reigning world champions Tang Jie-Ee Wei will take on Kim Jae-hyeon-Jang Ha-jeong in the second round after the South Koreans defeated Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie.
