Pearly-Thinaah feel sorry for the fans [WATCH]

KUALA LUMPUR: Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah know the feeling all too well, and that familiarity may yet prove their greatest comfort.

The world No. 2 suffered another painful early exit at the Malaysia Open on Thursday, going down 26-24, 21-17 to Indonesia's Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma–Meilysa Trias Puspitasari in the second round at Axiata Arena.

Coming off a strong 2025 campaign and carrying a spotless 4-0 head-to-head record against the Indonesians — including a victory in the SEA Games final last month — the defeat was a deflating blow that abruptly halted the momentum they had built.

It also reinforced a lingering frustration on home soil. Five appearances into their Malaysia Open journey, Pearly-Thinaah are still searching for a breakthrough beyond the second round.

Yet amid the disappointment, the pair were quick to strike a tone of perspective rather than despair.

"There must be frustration," said Pearly. "But winning and losing is normal for athletes. Today they prepared very well and played better than us. That's something we have to accept."

More importantly, Pearly-Thinaah insisted the setback would not derail their bigger picture.

"For what's next, we need to rebuild our confidence, especially in our own game," she said.

"We shouldn't let this loss bring us down. That's not right. We need to go back, discuss with the coach, train harder and improve. Once the confidence comes back, we fight again."

Thinaah echoed that sentiment, stressing that the defeat was more about the opposition rising to the occasion than a collapse from their side.

"They were well prepared and they played very well," she said.

"This is something we need to take note of and learn from."

The loss was particularly hard to digest given the atmosphere inside Axiata Arena, where a vocal home crowd willed the Malaysians back from an 11-1 deficit in the opening game.

"We really appreciate the fans who came to support us," Thinaah said.

"It's sad and disappointing. We feel sorry for the fans, especially those who travelled far. But we won't give up. We'll learn from this and come back stronger."

That confidence is not blind optimism. Pearly-Thinaah were in a similar position last year, bowing out in the opening round of the Malaysia Open before regrouping to enjoy a productive run across the season.

"This is something we must learn from," Thinaah added.

"We are confident we can come back from this. I'm glad I have Pearly by my side. We'll keep supporting each other and rebuild our confidence together."