Badminton

Pearly-Thinaah's world ranking set to soar

KUALA LUMPUR: National women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah are set to return to world's top 10, thanks to their French Open triumph on Sunday.

Pearly-Thinaah are projected to climb one rung from their current 11th rank when the Badminton World Federation update their ranking tomorrow.

They are set to enter the world's top 10 for the second time after first achieving it on May 17 before their ranking dropped eight weeks later.

Although the women's doubles event was never Malaysia's forte, the country did at one point boast a world No 1 in Chin Eei Hui-Wong Pei Tty back in 2009.

Khe Wei, who reached the 2016 Rio Olympics quarter-finals with Vivian, has expressed her excitement at Pearly-Thinaah's world-beating partnership.

She believes the sky is the limit for them.

"If they keep up with such performance, then I don't see why they cannot become one of the best women's doubles pairs in the world. I have no doubts that more titles are coming their way following this latest breakthrough," said Khe Wei.

"For me, it was a great victory at the French Open. They had beaten several world's top-five opponents en route to winning it, that itself speaks volumes about their quality.

"They were performing so well throughout the week, and I must say that Thinaah has improved tremendously. Her attacking ability is so much more powerful now.

"This will make their partnership even more lethal because Pearly is well known for her attacking prowess. They also have great defensive skills.

"Their fluid style of play on the court is also a joy to watch and makes it difficult for opponents to read their game."

Most Popular
Related Article
Says Stories