Pearly Tan quelled any concerns about her injury sustained during the Hong Kong women’s doubles final, where she and partner M. Thinaah finished as runners-up.
Tan appeared to injure her right leg towards the end of the deciding match, but carried on until the end in a match the Malaysians lost 21-14, 22-24, 9-21 to Indonesia’s Apriyani Rahayu-Siti Fadia Ramadhanti.
“I am happy to have finished all the matches without any injury. I will return home and strengthen my body after this,” she said.
The 23-year-old’s statement should come as a relief considering her history with injuries, and crucially that she would be fit ahead of the upcoming Asian Games.
As for their loss, the world number 10 pair chose to take the positives from their defeat.
“We have come so far, and it’s given us back our confidence. But we definitely need to improve during the crucial points. The Indonesians did well in those periods, they stayed patient and aggressive at the same time.
“We committed silly mistakes. But we do not want to take this negatively. We want to take back the positives and keep improving. What is important is we get back our confidence on court, be brave and enjoy the matches,” they said.
Despite coming so close to securing their first title in almost a year, the world number 10 pair can be content with their performance having come this far.
The last time they made it this far was at the Malaysia Masters in May, where they also finished as runners-up.
Tan-Thinaah will next head to Hangzhou, China for the Asian Games, with the women's team matches beginning from September 28 onwards.
