Pearly-Thinaah rise to world No. 2 after reaching China Open semi-final
The Malaysian women's doubles pair, currently ranked No. 3, outclassed Japan's world No. 8 Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto 21-16, 21-12 in the quarter-finals at the Olympic Sports Centre Gymnasium.
The convincing victory not only extended Pearly-Thinaah's head-to-head record over the Japanese pair to 4-1, but also elevated them past Japan's Chiharu Shida-Nami Matsuyama in the world rankings.
It also narrowed the gap on world No. 1 Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning of China.
The updated BWF world rankings will be released on Tuesday.
Pearly-Thinaah will next face China's world No. 7 pairing of Jia Yi Fan-Zhang Shu Xian in the semi-finals on Saturday — the same pair who ousted their teammates Go Pei Kee-Teoh Mei Xing in the last eight.
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