The world No 11 Thinaah Muralitharan and Pearly Tan survived a 211-shot marathon rally in their round-of-16 encounter against Japan’s Rena Miyaura and Ayako Sakuramoto at the BWF Malaysia Masters. The home pair were leading Miyaura and Sakuramoto in the final set of the match when the rally began. More than three minutes later, after a jaw-dropping showcase of athleticism and perseverance, Tan produced a well-disguised drop shot, which Sakuramoto could not reach, to seal the point, bringing an incredulous crowd to their feet. The home hopes then went on to seal a 21-17, 18-21, 21-19 victory.
