AICHI: National doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky described Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah’s failure to reach the women's doubles final at Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games as deeply disappointing, especially since the pair appeared to have a chance to wrap up the match in straight games.
Pearly-Thinaah were levelled at 19-19 in the second game but went down 21-16, 20-22, 12-21 to world No. 1 pair Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning of China at the at the Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium on Monday (Sept 28).
Pearly and Thinaah settled for the bronze medal - the first Malaysian pair to stand on the podium after Vivian Hoo-Woon Khe Wei's third place finish at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.
Rexy noted that the national pair had nearly secured the second set, but a few errors at critical moments allowed Shengshu and Tan Ning to stage a comeback and clinch victory in the deciding set.
"It is truly a pity because we could have gone further. We were close to winning the second set, but there were slight errors at crucial points.
"At those critical moments, they (Sheng Shu and Tan Ning) were perhaps bolder because they played more freely, with a ‘nothing to lose’ attitude,” he said when met.
Rexy added that physical strength was also a differentiating factor when the national pair faced pressure in the deciding set.
"We lost out in terms of strength in the third game,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rexy remains satisfied with the national squad's overall performance, noting increasing cohesion in both the men's and women's camps.
He stated that areas identified for improvement would be addressed in preparation for upcoming tournaments, including next year's SEA Games and the long-term goal of the Los Angeles 2028 (LA28) Olympics.
"We can see that both the men's and women's squads are solid and playing well.
"For next year’s SEA Games and the LA Olympics, we may need to work harder on the areas we have identified. In terms of skills, our players are still doing fine, but we likely need to improve on other aspects, including strength,” he said. - Bernama
