KUALA LUMPUR: Following the success of compatriots Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei in the mixed doubles hours earlier, women's pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah added more joy to the Malaysian camp by advancing to the semi-finals of the Korea Open yesterday (Aug 29).
Pearly-Thinaah defeated Taiwan's scratch pair Teng Chun Hsun-Yang Chu Yun 21-19, 21-15 at the Mokpo Indoor Stadium in Seoul in the last eight.
Earlier, Tang Jie-Ee Wei downed compatriots Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai 21-18, 21-11 to book their semi-final spot.
Thinaah said their good preparation helped them to get the better of the Taiwanese.
"We were prepared for the match today, and our rhythm was also better than in our previous match.
"Of course, there's room for improvement, so we have to keep our focus for the next match," Thinaah told SPOTV in a post-match interview.
However, world No. 9 Pearly-Thinaah have a mountain to climb in the semi-finals as they will be up against world No. 2 Baek Ha Na-Lee So Hee of South Korea.
The Koreans enjoy a 2-1 win-loss record against Pearly-Thinaah and they also have home ground advantage.
"Every time we play them, it's really tough but we give our best and try to challenge them," said Pearly.
Thinaah added: "The home crowd will want to support their players, it's the same everywhere. I don't want to put too much pressure on ourselves. We just want to focus on our game and every point that we play."