Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah moved one step closer to a career-best world No. 2 ranking after booking their spot in the China Open quarter-finals on Thursday, overcoming fatigue and challenging conditions in Changzhou.
The world No. 3 pair battled past Japan’s world No. 99 Rui Hirokami and Sayaka Hobara 21-17, 21-13 in a 37-minute second-round match at the Olympic Sports Centre Gymnasium.
Despite tired legs following last week’s deep run at the Japan Open, the Malaysians remained composed under pressure.
“Last week definitely took a toll physically, and the draught today didn’t help,” said Thinaah. “But we stayed focused and adapted our strategy.”
A win in the quarter-finals will see Pearly-Thinaah leapfrog Japan’s Chiharu Shida and Nami Matsuyama—who lost in the first round—for the No. 2 spot in the world rankings. Shida-Matsuyama currently sit at 88,832 points, but Pearly-Thinaah are now within striking distance.
“Our movement was a bit slow today, but we hope to improve tomorrow,” said Pearly, whose pair improved their head-to-head record against Hirokami-Hobara to 3-0.
Up next for the Malaysians is a tough test against either Japan’s world No. 9 Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto or Indonesia’s world No. 10 Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma-Amalia Cahaya Pratiwi.
Reaching the quarter-finals marks Pearly-Thinaah’s best-ever result at the China Open, and with a new milestone ranking within reach, the duo will be highly motivated to go one step further on Friday.
