KUALA LUMPUR: No matter how strong a wall is, it will eventually crumble.
National coaching director Rexy Mainaky believes that one day, women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah will finally break their losing streak against Japan’s Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida.
However, that moment did not come at the All England, as they fell short once again in the quarter-finals on Friday, losing 17-21, 19-21.
Matsuyama-Shida have been a stumbling block for Pearly and Thinaah since their first meeting at the 2020 Asian Badminton Team Championships in Manila, the Philippines.
To date, the Malaysian duo have won only once in 12 encounters, their sole victory coming in the quarter-finals of the 2022 French Open. The rest have gone in favour of the Japanese pair, including their bronze medal decider at the Paris Olympics last August.
Rexy, however, stressed that the latest defeat in Birmingham was not due to their inability to beat Matsuyama-Shida but rather because Pearly was not at full fitness, having yet to recover from an ankle sprain.
She sustained the injury during Thursday’s second-round match against Indonesia’s Apriyani Rahayu-Siti Fadia Ramadhanti.
“This is not about them being unable to break their losing record against the Japanese pair. If you look at the match, Pearly was forced to play on one foot,” said Rexy.
“She fought hard to win, but that does not mean they are incapable of overcoming the Japanese pair. Pearly was simply not at full fitness.
“This is what we need to consider instead of questioning why they did not make it to the semi-finals.
Pearly-Thinaah will not compete in the Swiss Open, which is set to begin on Tuesday. Instead, Pearly will continue her treatment and recovery in Kuala Lumpur.
The 25-year-old is under close observation, with less than four weeks to go before the national squad compete in the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, from April 8-13.
Two weeks later, they will head to Xiamen for the Sudirman Cup team event, which takes place from April 27-May 1.
RESULTS
SEMI-FINALS
Mixed doubles: Guo Xinwa-Chen Fanghui (Chn) bt Jiang zhenbang-Huang Dongping (Chn) 21-15, 24-26, 21-16.
QUARTER-FINALS
Men’s singles: Lee Chia-hao (Tpe) bt Kenta Nishimoto (Jpn) 21-9, 21-18; Alex Lanier (Fra) bt Wang Tzu-wei (Tpe) 21-19, 21-13.
Men’s doubles: Leo Rolly Carnando-Bagas Maulana (Ina) bt Lee Jhe-huei-Yang Po-hsuan (Tpe) 21-11, 20-22, 22-20; He Jiting-Ren Xiangyu (Chn) bt Kang Min-hyuk-Ki Dong-ju (Kor) 21-19, 21-15; Sabar Gutama-Moh Reza Pahlevi (Ina) bt Liu Kuang-heng-Yang Po-han (Tpe) 21-11, 21-17; Kim Wonho-Seo Seung-jae-Xie Haonan-Zeng Weihan (Chn) 21-19, 21-10.
Women’s singles: Han Yue (Chn) bt Gregoria Mariska Tunjung (Ina) 21-15, 21-17; Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) bt Tomoka Miyazaki (Jpn) 26-24, 21-16; Wang Zhiyi (Chn) bt Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) 21-16, 21-12; An Seyoung (Kor) bt Chen Yufei (Chn) 21-9, 21-14.
Women’s doubles: Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto (Jpn) bt Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi (Jpn) 21-15, 10-21, 21-15; Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian (Chn) bt Li Yijing-Luo Xumin (Chn) 21-11, 21-12.
Mixed doubles: Lee Jong-min-Chae Yu-jung (Kor) bt Gregory Mairs-Jenny Mairs (Eng) 21-19, 21-14.
