National women’s doubles shuttler Pearly Tan will return to Malaysia on Saturday for further treatment after she and partner M. Thinaah conceded a walkover in the Japan Open second round, which saw her leave the arena on a wheelchair.
Tan also admitted the decision to play on was purely her own, even after her coaches wanted her to stop when she first felt the pain on her left knee midway through the second game.
“I am fine and will be back to Malaysia as soon as possible for treatment. First of all, it was solely my own decision to continue playing even when my coaches wanted me to stop.
“I hope my stubbornness will not lead to any misunderstanding. I also want to thank my partner Thinaah that fought so hard for us. I know you did your best to cover me. It’s not the outcome we want but we will be back even stronger,” she said on her social media page.
Thinaah also echoed Tan’s sentiment that the decision to carry on playing was theirs.
Tan-Thinaah won the first game against South Koreans Baek Ha-na-Lee Yu-lim 21-15, but Tan needed medical attention midway through the second game.
After some assessment, the medical team allowed her to continue playing on and Tan herself looked okay to resume .
The Malaysians lost that game 19-21, and so it went to a decider.
But it became apparent Tan was struggling to move on court, with Thinaah working overtime to close the spaces.
Tan felt the full brunt of the pain as the pair trailed 11-16 and eventually had to be helped off the court by Thinaah before leaving the court on a wheelchair in tears.