Malaysia have two representatives in the Malaysia Masters semi-finals after Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah and Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik won their quarter-final matches in convincing fashion on Friday.

Tan-Thinaah were first to book their place after a 21-18, 21-17 triumph over Apriyani Rahayu-Siti Fadia, followed by Chia-Soh’s 23-21, 21-16 success over Chinese Taipei’s Chang Ko-chi-Po Li-wei.

Tan-Thinaah’s performance would have definitely turned heads within the women’s doubles fraternity, as the Malaysians came into this showdown against Rahayu-Fadia as underdogs despite a good backing at the Axiata Arena.

The Indonesian scratch pairing were blossoming seamlessly since being paired in May, having won the SEA Games gold medal and the Malaysia Open last week.

But Tan-Thinaah executed the perfect gameplan against the Indonesians, as they launched into offensive mode from the first point and never let that pace drop until the match was sealed in 42 minutes.

It was a bold strategy that needed both aggression and calm.

“We knew they were aggressive, so we knew we had to be also aggressive, yet calm. Because sometimes we can be aggressive yet clumsy. We did well in that aspect today, but of course our game still has room for improvement.

“It has definitely boosted our confidence going into the semi-finals. We don’t have any real pressure on our part, we just want to enjoy and do our best,” said the pair, who next take on top seeds Chen Qing Chen-Jia Yi Fan.

Chia-Soh also deserved praise for battling back after almost conceding the first game as they saved match points controlling the second with relative ease for the 47-minute victory.

They take on Malaysia Open finalists Fajar Alfian-Rian Ardianto next.

Two other Malaysian representatives bowed out on Friday.

Junaidi Arif-Muhammad Haikal lost in straight games against Alfian-Ardianto, while Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai were no match for second seeds Zheng Si Wei-Huang Ya Qiong in the mixed doubles, losing 10-21, 14-21.