Malaysia’s leading women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah saw their China Open 2026 campaign come to an end after suffering a straight-games defeat to Japan’s top combination Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto in the quarter-finals of the prestigious BWF World Tour Super 1000 event.
The world No. 5 Malaysians, who were Malaysia’s last remaining representatives in the RM2 million tournament held at the Olympic Sports Centre Gymnasium in Changzhou, were beaten 16-21, 16-21 by the world No. 3 Japanese pair in a 46-minute contest.
The latest result leaves the head-to-head record between the two pairs perfectly balanced at five victories each after 10 career meetings.
The defeat also highlighted the challenge facing Pearly and Thinaah as they continue rebuilding their rhythm after returning from a two-month absence caused by Pearly’s injury.
Speaking after the match, Thinaah admitted the pair still have significant work to do as they aim to regain their best level.
“Overall, there are still many aspects that we need to improve. It has been quite some time since we were able to play together again, and I think that’s one of the challenges we still need to overcome.”
She credited the Japanese pair for controlling the crucial moments of the match.
“They played really well and constantly put us under pressure. Especially whenever we tried to close the gap, they responded strongly in the important points, which allowed them to extend their lead.”
Despite the quarter-final exit, Thinaah believes there is still an important positive to take away from the tournament.
The Malaysian pair completed the China Open without any injury setbacks, providing a welcome boost ahead of another busy stretch on the international calendar.
“The most important thing is that we finished the tournament healthy. We have another tournament next week, so our focus now is to prepare as well as possible and deliver a better performance.”
Pearly and Thinaah’s elimination also marked the end of Malaysia’s challenge in Changzhou after every other Malaysian representative had already exited in the second round, making it one of the country’s toughest China Open campaigns in recent years.
The pair are still chasing their breakthrough BWF World Tour Super 1000 title, having reached two finals at this level without lifting the trophy.
Their only championship this season remains the Indonesia Masters Super 500 title won in January.
Malaysia also continues its long wait for a women’s doubles triumph at the China Open, with no Malaysian pair having captured the title in the tournament’s 40-year history.
Credit Photo : SBA
