Paris — Malaysian badminton etched a new milestone in Paris as Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan became the first-ever Malaysian women’s doubles pair to secure a medal at the BWF World Championships.
In a dominant quarter-final performance at the Adidas Arena, the world No. 2 duo overpowered Bulgaria’s Gabriela and Stefani Stoeva 21-15, 21-10 to reach the semifinals and guarantee at least a bronze medal.
🎥 Watch Highlights of Pearly/Thinaah vs. Stoeva Sisters:
The win was their fourth over the Stoeva sisters in five meetings, reinforcing their recent dominance after a similar victory at the Japan Open last month.
Pearly and Thinaah will now face their familiar rivals from Japan, Nami Matsuyama/Chiharu Shida, in the semifinals. The other women’s doubles semi will feature an all-Asian clash between Liu Sheng Shu/Tan Ning (China) and Rin Iwanaga/Kie Nakanishi (Japan).
“Consistency and patience were the keys today,” Pearly told BWF. “Now we just have to support each other and stay focused point by point.”
Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei End 19-Year Wait for Malaysia in Mixed Doubles
Malaysia’s mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei also made headlines, becoming the first Malaysian pair in 19 years to win a World Championships medal in the category since Koo Kien Keat/Wong Pei Tty in 2006.
Ranked world No. 4, they delivered a sharp and confident performance to defeat India’s Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto 21-15, 21-13. The win followed their recent victory over the same pair at the Indonesia Open earlier this year.
Their semifinal opponents will be France’s Thom Gicquel/Delphine Delrue, while the other semifinal will feature an all-Chinese clash between Guo Xin Wa/Chen Fang Hui and Jiang Zhen Bang/Wei Ya Xin.
“We’ve had to overcome a lot of criticism since being reunited,” said Toh Ee Wei. “This result means a lot to us. We just want to stay grounded and focus on the next match.”
Men’s Doubles: All-Malaysian Pairs Knocked Out
Despite earlier hopes of a Malaysian surge in men’s doubles, both remaining pairs fell in the quarterfinals:
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Man Wei Chong/Tee Kai Wun lost a tight 3-set thriller to World No. 1 Kim Won Ho/Seo Seung Jae of South Korea: 21-23, 23-21, 15-21
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Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik were defeated by India’s powerhouse pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty: 12-21, 19-21
Singles Action: Canada Makes History in Men’s Singles
Canadian shuttler Victor Lai shocked the badminton world by beating Singapore’s Loh Kean Yew 22-20, 21-18 to become the first Canadian men’s singles player to secure at least a bronze medal at the World Championships.
He will face China’s Shi Yu Qi in the semifinals, while the other men’s singles semifinal will feature Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn vs Denmark’s Anders Antonsen.
In the women’s singles semis:
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An Se Young (Korea) faces Chen Yu Fei (China)
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Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) meets Putri Kusuma Wardani (Indonesia)
This year’s World Championships in Paris continues to deliver historic firsts for Malaysian badminton. Stay tuned to BadmintonPlanet.com for more breaking badminton news, in-depth match coverage, and highlights.
