Vantaa, Finland – Malaysia’s top badminton pairs made a bold statement at the 2025 Arctic Open Super 500, kicking off their European season with impressive first-round victories.
đź“ş Watch Pearly/Thinaah’s Match Here:
Second seeds Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan, the reigning World Championships silver medalists, needed just 32 minutes to dismantle Denmark’s Natasja P. Anthonisen and Amalie Cecilie Kudsk in straight sets, 21-13, 21-14. Their next challenge will be against Indonesia’s Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma and Meilysa Trias Puspitasari, who received a walkover in the opening round.
Tan and Muralitharan, winners of this year’s Thailand Open, are seeking their second title of the 2025 season. They enter the Arctic Open as clear favorites, though a potential showdown looms with top-seeded Chinese pair and defending champions Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning, who also cruised through their opener against Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo Yun and Yu Chien Hui.
Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles draw, Malaysia’s No. 2 seeds and former World Champions Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik saw off Denmark’s Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard with a composed 21-18, 21-15 win. They will face compatriots Low Hang Yee and Ng Eng Cheong in the next round. Low/Ng received a first-round bye.
Also moving into the second round were Choong Hon Jian/Muhammad Haikal, who edged China’s Huang Di/Liu Yang 23-21, 22-20, and Junaidi Arif/Yap Roy King, who dispatched Sweden’s Mio Molin/Max Svensson 21-13, 21-15. Arif/Yap now face the tournament’s No. 3 seeds Kim Astrup/Anders Skaarup Rasmussen of Denmark in a high-stakes clash.
In men’s singles, Thailand’s top seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn advanced comfortably, while Chinese stars Wang Zheng Xing and Weng Hong Yang suffered early exits. Notably, France’s Toma Junior Popov was stunned in a dramatic upset by India’s Tharun Mannepalli.
With Malaysian and international stars battling it out across all categories, the 2025 Arctic Open promises to be a thrilling leg of the BWF European tour.
