Pearly-Thinaah clinch Hong Kong Open title

 

Malaysia’s top women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah claimed the 2024 Hong Kong Open title at the Hong Kong Coliseum in Kowloon today.

In the Super 500 final, the pair took just 38 minutes to defeat the world number three pair from China, Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning.

Their valiant battle secured them a victory in straight sets, 21-14, 21-14.

This triumph ended the world’s eighth-ranked pair’s title drought in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) calendar, with their last victory being at the 2022 French Open.

It also saw them rise from their runner-up finish at the 2023 Hong Kong Open to champions this year.

Even more impressive, this is the third time the 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallists have defeated this Chinese pair in seven encounters. They last lost to the Chinese pair at the 2024 Japan Open last month.

Pearly-Thinaah appeared to have rediscovered their magic touch as this was their second consecutive finals appearance after finishing as runners-up at the 2024 Korea Open, where they were defeated by home pair Jeong Na Eun-Kim Hye Jeong.

Yesterday, Tan-Thinaah battled for over an hour to book their spot in today’s finals, defeating South Korean pair Baek Ha Na- Lee So Hee, 22-20, 17-21, 21-15.

Malaysia Day gift

Meanwhile, Thinaah said the victory was an early gift to Malaysian fans in conjunction with Malaysia Day 2024 tomorrow, as they previously missed the chance to claim the Korea Open 2024 title for the National Day celebration at the end of last month.

“We never really thought about it (the first Malaysian women’s pair to win the doubles title at the Hong Kong Open) so we are really happy. It helps us (to be more) confident (in the future).

“(At match point) I think both of us were thinking about the same thing, finish the game faster. However, we made silly mistakes which we should not have but we will take note and be more cautious (in the future),” she said through an audio clip shared by BWF today.

Pearly also acknowledged that good communication was the key to today’s victory and hopes the excellent momentum can continue in the upcoming tournaments.

- Bernama