The crowd were on their feet as Malaysia’s Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan won a crucial point in epic fashion in the women’s doubles quarterfinals, at the ongoing Malaysia Masters 2023 on Thursday. Tan was in disbelief as she fell on her knees and Muralitharan threw her racket in the air.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Ayako Sakuramoto, who failed to connect, fell on the ground and her teammate Rene Miyaura took time to process it. The rally took place in the third game, both sides had won one each previously and the score read 21-17, 18-21, 16-14 in favour of the Malaysians.
Leading in the final game when the nerve-wracking rally began, Tan served as the crowd were laid witness to this historic moment. Both pairs showed world class technique, athleticism and resilience and it was only until a visibly tired Tan produced a well-disguised drop shot, and Sakuramoto failed to reach it.
Tan and Muralitharan ended up clinching a 21-17, 18-21, 21-19 victory. The 211-shot rally is also believed to be the longest-ever in competitive badminton. Also, at last year’s Korea Open, a women’s doubles match produced a 195-shot rally, with the BWF calling it a record.
Here is the video of the record-breaking rally:
Here are the reactions:
After the match, Tan pointed out that their mental strength helped them win the point. “We knew we were tired but the opponent was tired too,” she said.
“In our minds we wanted to win that shot, so we just mentally prepared ourselves very well and I’m so happy we won the point”, she further added.
Meanwhile, Muralitharan said, “Winning the rally felt like winning the match. I also thought that we won after surviving the rally.”
“I was too excited that it was finally over because it was exhausting and we just wanted it to end fast. When it was over, I really needed a break and I threw the racket as collecting it from the ground gave me some time to rest.”
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