PETALING JAYA: M. Thinaah is happy with how things are going, and she wants to keep it that way.
The national women’s doubles shuttler is determined to enjoy the moment with partner Pearly Tan rather than burden themselves with expectations, even as they stand one win away from the Denmark Open title.
The world No. 5 Malaysians booked their place in the final with a 21-16, 21-14 win over China’s Bao Lijing-Cao Zihan in 37 minutes at the Jyske Bank Arena in Odense yesterday.
“I’m really happy with today’s performance,” said Thinaah, 28.
“We just wanted to enjoy the matches here in Denmark and apply what we’ve practised in training.”
Their run has already ended an 18-year wait for a Malaysian women’s doubles pair to reach the final, with Chin Eei Hui-Wong Pei Tty the last to achieve the feat in 2008. Eei Hui-Pei Tty went on to win the title.
But Thinaah is keeping her focus on the process, especially after a demanding schedule that saw the pair compete at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games just a week ago.
“I’m most satisfied with our communication, especially when things weren’t going as smoothly as we wanted.
“We managed to react quickly and turn it back around. There are good things and also things that we need to take note of as we prepare for tomorrow,” she said.
Pearly-Thinaah will face either Japan’s Hinata Suzuki-Nao Yamakita or seventh seeds Sumire Nakade-Miyu Takahashi in the final today.
Both pairs have beaten the Malaysians this year. Nakade-Takahashi edged them out to win the Taipei Open in August, while Suzuki-Yamakita defeated them in the China Open knockout stage in July.
For Pearly-Thinaah, the challenge now is to turn their historic run into a title – without losing the enjoyment that has brought them this far.
