KUALA LUMPUR: Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah made history on Thursday by becoming the first Malaysian women's doubles pair to advance to the Olympic semi-finals.
The world No. 12 achieved the milestone with a commanding performance in the quarter-finals, defeating reigning All England champions Kim So Yeong-Kong Hee Yong of South Korea 21-12, 21-13 at the Porte de la Chapelle Arena in Paris.
Pearly admitted she and Thinaah were nervous heading into the match, making it difficult for them to get a good night's rest.
"We knew the match was very important not only to us but for the Koreans as well. However, we reminded ourselves to stay calm and enjoy the rallies during the match," Pearly, 24, told the Badminton World Federation (BWF) after the match.
Meanwhile, Thinaah said she does not want to lose focus over their history-making feat, preferring to concentrate on their next match instead.
"We are proud of each other. We didn't think about the outcome as we focused more on the processes. We tried to enjoy every single rally and that helped us in the match with the support of our coaches.
"There are still a few more matches to go, so we just want to prepare for the next one," added the 26-year-old.
Pearly-Thinaah surpassed the record set by former women's doubles pair Woon Khe Wei-Vivian Hoo, who reached the last eight at Rio 2016.
Awaiting Pearly and Thinaah in the semi-finals on Friday are world No. 1 Chen Qing Chen-Jia Yi Fan, who defeated the Malaysians in the group stage.
Qing Chen-Yi Fan easily overcame Bulgaria's Gabriela Stoeva and Stefani Stoeva 21-15, 21-8 in their quarter-final match.
"We came into the Olympics with the mentality that we had nothing to lose but just to give our best in every match. So against Qing Chen- Yi Fan, we will continue our momentum, give our best and enjoy every point with no regrets," Pearly added.