KUALA LUMPUR – The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) is willing to wait for Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah to find a suitable time to talk about their future with the national team.
In the meantime, BAM will continue to pay the players their regular salaries, which is not a common practice in many sports, especially when contract renewals are pending.
After their semi-final exit at the Malaysia Masters last week, Pearly and Thinaah told local reporters that they had no new information or comments regarding their contract situation with BAM, as they are focused on the upcoming Singapore and Indonesia Opens.
BAM had previously mentioned that the contract issue would be addressed after the Thailand Open, but there has been little communication since then.
Scoop first reported in April that Pearly and Thinaah were considering going independent.
BAM later confirmed that their contracts are set to expire at the end of 2024 and that new offers were made in January. However, the world No. 4 duo has not yet signed, reportedly seeking a salary comparable to BAM’s highest earners, estimated to be around RM2 million annually.
A source close to the players informed Scoop that after lengthy negotiations, Pearly and Thinaah are prepared to commit to new contracts.
“Since the girls believe they will be busy with the Singapore and Indonesia Opens, we are prepared to wait,” BAM secretary-general Datuk Kenny Goh told Scoop recently.
When asked if the players are still receiving their salaries despite not having signed new agreements, Kenny simply replied, “For now, yes, they are still receiving their salaries.”
Fresh off their victory at the Thailand Open two weeks ago, Pearly and Thinaah will begin their Singapore Open campaign tomorrow against Hong Kong’s Lui Lok Lok and Tsang Hiu Yan in the first round. — May 27, 2025