Thinaah-Pearly clinch Team A the title
IT is only a matter of time before M. Thinaah-Pearly Tan cement their status as Malaysia’s No 1 in women’s doubles.
Yesterday, Thinaah-Pearly delivered the winning point that saw Team A clinch the inaugural President’s Cup when they defeated Team B’s Toh Ee Wei-Yap Ling 2117, 21-15 in the fourth match of the women’s team simulation at Academy Badminton Malaysia in Bukit Kiara. Team A won 3-2.
“This year has really been challenging. Most of our targets had to be put on hold because of Covid-19,” said Thinaah said when asked how long would it take before they become national No 1.
“We can’t really say much because we haven’t played in international tournaments since resuming training in July.
“However, our targets have not changed. Hopefully, we get to achieve them next year.”.
Team A drew first blood when women’s singles Soniia Cheah saw off last year’s Sea Games champion S.Kisona 21-14, 25-23.
Chow Mei Kuan-Lee Meng Yean then levelled the score for Team B with an easy 21-10, 21-14 win over Vivian Hoo-Yap Cheng Wen.
Two-time world junior champion Goh Jin Wei, who has been struggling with fitness since undergoing a colectomy surgery last year, announced her return to competitive action in superb fashion to regain Team A’s lead.
The 20-year-old, who had to skip the Invitational Championships last month, thumped Eoon Qi Xuan 21-12, 21-9 before Thinaah-Pearly clinched the winning point.
In the final match, Lee Ying Ying defeated Team A’s K.Letshanaa 21-17, 21-7 to reduce the deficit.
The men's team simulation will commence today.