KUALA LUMPUR — Can the third time be the charm for Malaysia’s women’s doubles pair, Pearly Tan and M Thinaah, to advance to the knockout stage of the World Tour Finals?
The answer will soon unfold as Pearly and Thinaah, along with five other Malaysian representatives, begin their World Tour Finals campaign in Hangzhou next Tuesday.
This year’s tournament presents a tough road for Pearly and Thinaah, who have been drawn into Group A alongside top pairs Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning, Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida, and Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand.
Their first challenge comes against Liu and Tan Ning, the world number one pair, who have a dominant record over them, having won six out of their nine encounters.
Things become even more daunting when they face Matsuyama and Shida, as Pearly and Thinaah have only managed one victory in 11 meetings—during the 2022 French Open quarter-finals.
Their best chance for valuable points lies in their clash with the Indian pair, Jolly and Gopichand, whom Pearly and Thinaah have defeated six times in the past.
Despite the tough competition, national coach Rosman Razak remains optimistic, setting the goal of reaching the semi-finals, even with the challenging group stage ahead.
“As expected, when all the best women’s doubles teams come together, this kind of draw is to be anticipated.
“But we’re looking at this draw from a positive perspective and are looking forward to giving tough competition in each match.
“It’s not going to be easy, but we will fight to finish in the top two of the group and advance to the semi-finals.
“However, as I’ve said, I will take it one match at a time because each one will be incredibly challenging, and we need to be fully prepared,” said Rosman.
This situation brings to mind Pearly and Thinaah’s draw in the “group of death” at the Paris Olympics last August.
Initially considered the weakest pair in Group A, they faced world number one Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan from China, Japan’s sixth-ranked Wakana Nagahara-May Matsumoto, and Indonesia’s Tokyo 2020 gold medalist Apriyani Rahayu, now paired with Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti.
Despite the odds, they finished as runners-up in their group, advancing to the bronze medal match, where they were defeated by Matsuyama and Shida.
In addition to Pearly and Thinaah, Malaysia will also be represented by men’s singles player Lee Zii Jia, men’s doubles pairs Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzudin Rumsani, as well as mixed doubles pairs Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei and Shevon Lai-Goh Soon Huat at this year’s World Tour Finals. — December 8, 2024
