National coach Rosman Razak says Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah must work harder to close the gap on China’s dominant world number ones.
KUALA LUMPUR: National women’s doubles head coach Rosman Razak admits his top pair, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah, remain a step behind China’s world number ones Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning.
He said the Malaysian duo must work harder to close the gap on the exceptionally consistent Chinese pair.
Liu and Tan triumphed at the 2025 World Championships in Paris and won two Super 1000 titles last year.
“We are trying to close the gap,” Rosman told reporters after a training session.
He explained that their training programme is reviewed after every tournament as part of an ongoing process.
Rosman believes their first title of the year at the Indonesia Masters will spur them to greater heights.
Pearly and Thinaah won the final via walkover after their Japanese opponents conceded.
The victory made them the first Malaysian women’s pair to win that title since 2011.
Rosman hopes the world number two pair can maintain the momentum and consistency they showed last season.
They won three titles in 2025: the Thailand Open, Arctic Open and Japan Masters.
“We have to take it as a challenge, and try to at least maintain what they achieved last year,” he said.
He stressed their long-term plan is to win an Olympic medal, requiring sustained performance over time.
The coach added that managing the pair’s emotions and pressure is also a key concern.
Pearly and Thinaah missed a medal in their Olympic debut at the 2024 Paris Games.
They lost to Japan’s Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida in the bronze medal playoff.
