Malaysia Masters: Home heartbreak as Pearly-Thinaah crash out in semis
MALAYSIA 's top women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah fell short of reaching the final of the Malaysia Masters 2025 after losing to China's Jia Yi Fan-Zhang Shu Xian in their semi-final clash at Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil here today.
Despite playing in front of home supporters and riding on the momentum of their Thailand Open win last week, Pearly-Thinaah were unable to maintain consistency in their game and had to concede defeat 16-21, 21-15, 14-21.
This marks the second consecutive loss for Pearly-Thinaah to the same Chinese pair, having also lost to them at the Orleans Masters 2025 last March.
'For today's match we feel disappointed, but we won't dwell on it for long. We really gave our best and we did quite well,' Pearly told reporters afterwards.
Pearly described Yi Fan as having great game variety, particularly in controlling the backcourt, while Shu Xian is an aggressive net player — making them a well-synchronised women's doubles pair.
The defeat extends Pearly-Thinaah's Malaysia Masters heartbreak, with their last final appearance in this tournament being in the 2023 edition, where they lost to South Korea's Baek Ha Na-Lee So Hee 20-22, 21-8, 17-21 in an epic 101-minute battle.
Meanwhile, Pearly-Thinaah remain tight-lipped about their future with the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) after reports that their contract ended late last year.
'No comment. We've got a tournament coming up. We don't really have time, so no comment on this,' said Pearly.
Pearly-Thinaah are next scheduled to face Hong Kong's Lui Lok Lok-Tsang Hiu Yan in the first round of the Singapore Open 2025, which will take place from May 27 to June 1.
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