Pearly Tan-M Thinaah lost 21-18, 13-21, 14-21 to Ririna Hiramoto-Chiharu Shida in 64 minutes. (Bernama pic)PETALING JAYA: World No 4 women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah crashed out of the Japan Masters in the opening round, losing to 214th-ranked Japanese pair Ririna Hiramoto-Chiharu Shida in three games.
In a match marred by numerous unforced errors, the tournament’s second seeds lost 21-18, 13-21, 14-21 in 64 minutes at the World Tour Super 500 championship held at the Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium.
It was a major upset as Ririna-Chiharu only started playing together last month, and this was their third tournament as partners. However, the experienced Chiharu has won several major titles with other partners.
