KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s number one women’s doubles duo Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah skilfully overcame strong winds in the arena to win their first-round match at the Indonesia Open today.
While their triumph with a scoreline of 21-19, 22-20 against Chinese Taipei pair Sung Shuo-yun and Yu Chien-hui might appear effortless at first glance, the 40-minute match was far from easy.
The unpredictable nature of strong winds at the Istora Senayan Complex in Jakarta added an unexpected challenge to Pearly and Thinaah’s performance, despite their familiarity with the venue’s conditions.
“I think we have been trying to get used to the court because we have been here for a few years, but every year will be different. We support each other and focus on our gameplay.
“We want to find our own gameplay, make some tricky shots, just be ourselves, and support each other.,” said Pearly.
Thinaah, her teammate, experienced similar challenges but said she views it as part of the process to refine their game.
“As one of the early players on the court today, we experienced some drift, and the wind was quite strong.
“However, we’re uncertain about the conditions for the later matches since it depends on the venue’s condition.
“We’re aware of the mistakes we made, but it’s all part of finding our rhythm and style of play. For the first match, I believe we can improve for the second round,” said Thinaah.
However, Pearly and Thinaah’s stellar momentum was not replicated by their teammates in the mixed doubles event.
The fourth-seeded pair for the tournament, Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei, continued to struggle with performance issues as they were defeated by the South Korean duo Seo Seung-jae and Chae Yu-jung with a score of 13-21, 15-21.
Additionally, Masters Malaysia champions Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Lai were also eliminated in the first round after losing to Hong Kong pair Reginald Lee and Ng Tsz Yau with a score of 21-16, 17-21, 10-21. – June 4, 2024