This is one epic badminton game!
At Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s Axiata Arena (actually Putra Indoor Stadium), Malaysia’s top women’s pair Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan on Thursday, survived a 211-shot marathon rally in their round-of-16 encounter against Japan's Rena Miyaura and Ayako Sakuramoto at the BWF Malaysia Masters 2023 (May 23-28).
[Note: The rally could be the longest ever seen in competitive play. At last year’s Korea Open, another women’s doubles match produced a 195-shot exchange, which the Badminton World Federation said at the time was a record].
The home pair were leading Miyaura and Sakuramoto 16-14 in the final set of the match when the rally began. More than three minutes later, after a jaw-dropping showcase of athleticism and perseverance, Tan produced a well-disguised drop shot, which Sakuramoto could not reach, to seal the point, bringing an incredulous crowd to their feet. The home hopes then went on to seal a 21-17, 18-21, 21-19 victory.
Watch the amazing rally here:
Then, on Friday, in the quarter-finals, Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan secured a dramatic 13-21, 21-19, 21-16 victory over Japan's Yuki Fukushima-Sayaka Hirota.
And in the semi-final yesterday, the never-say-die Malaysians staged a remarkable comeback in the second game, recovering from 11-2 down, to beat World No. 5 Jeong Na Eun-Kim Hye Jeong of South Korea 21-19, 23-21.
The world number 11 pair will face Baek Ha Na-Lee So Hee of South Korea in the final today.
Pearly Tan-Thinaah Muralitharan are just one win away from becoming the first Malaysian pair to win the women's doubles title at the Malaysia Masters since Chin Eei Hui-Wong Pei Tty in 2012.
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