A BRONZE medal is now within grasp for national top women’s doubles pair of Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan in the Paris Olympics 2024 after they gunned down South Korea’s world No. 10 Kim So-yeong-Kong Hee-yong in straight sets of 21-12, 21-13 to advance to the semi-finals.
No Malaysian women’s pair has ever reach the last four in the Olympics – something that the world No. 12 pair has accomplished after surviving their group of death ordeal which featured China’s world’s No. 1 Jia Yifan-Chen Qingchen, Japan’s Wakana Nagahara-Mayu Matsumoto (world’s No. 6) and Indonesia’s Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhasnti-Apriyani-Rahayu (world’s No. 8).
The fiercer duo who spots an aggressive style of play had thus far been consistent since their 17-21, 20-22 straight set defeat on Saturday (July 27) to China’s Jia-Chen.
At the brink of being knocked out at the group stage on Sunday (July 28) after having gone down 18-21 in the first game to Japan’s Nagahara-Matsumoto, Pearly-Thinaah staged a gallant fight back to win the next two games 21-15 and 21-16.
In a make-or-break affair against Siti Fadia-Apriyani on Tuesday (July 30), the Kedah-born Pearly and Klang-born Thinaah disposed of their regional rival in straight sets of 21-18, 21-9 to book a place in today’s (Aug 1) quarter finals.
Whether is their return-to-form or prospect of the RM1 mil prize money by the National Sports Incentive Scheme (SHAKAM) if they can net Malaysia’s first gold in the Olympics is doing the trick, Pearly and Thinaah were in their elements to wrap up their encounter with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Kim and Kong in 37 minutes.
Now that they have made it it to the last four, they will go up against Jia-Chen again in a repeat of their group match after the top form Chinese pair is hot favourite eliminated three-time European champions and world No, 21 Bulgarian sisters Gabriela Stoeva-Stefani Stoeva 21-15, 21-8.
Taking their match one at a time is the right thing to do; for now, Malaysian badminton fans at the the Porte De La Chapelle Arena can relish the chances of top national men’s single Lee Zee Jia who will be up against crowd favourite Toma Junior Popov and national men’s doubles pair of Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik who is pitted against top Indian pair of Chirag Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy. – Aug 1, 2024
