Pearly-Thinaah make history after winning Hong Kong Open

Pearly Tan-M.Thinaah gifted the country the perfect Malaysia Day present by winning the Hong Kong Open women's doubles title on Sunday.

The Malaysians were in full control throughout the final to defeat China's Tan Ning-Liu Sheng Siu 21-14, 21-14 at the Hong Kong Coliseum to confirm victory after just 38-minutes.

It was also one of Tan-Thinaah's first silverware in two years since they last won the French Open in 2022.

The national pair secured the lead after dominating the first game thanks to their excellent net play where they intercepted their opponents returns brilliantly.

They were superior in their offensive too, firing in the smashes as the Chinese pair succumbed rather tamely.

It got better for Tan-Thinaah in the second game, as they raced away to a 11-4 lead against the Paris Olympics silver medalists.

The Malaysians produced a fantastic defensive performance to thwart their opponents who tried their best to raise the tempo.

Frustrated by Tan-Thinaah's resolve the to keep returning the shuttle, Tan Ning-Liu started to make unforced errors.

Tan-Thinaah soon reached 20-9 before the Chinese pair saved five match points.

But it was over when Liu's serve found the net, ensuring the historic win for Tan-Thinaah.

This is because the world number eight pair becomes the first Malaysian women's doubles pair to win the Hong Kong Open.

Tan-Thinaah have grown from strength to strength since the Paris Olympics where they finished fourth.

Since then, they reached the Korea Open final two weeks ago before securing their first silverware of the year on Sunday.

It also made up for the disappointed of last year which saw them finish second at the Hong Kong Open.