New delhi: Malaysia's top women's doubles pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah advanced to the third round of the 2026 World Badminton Championships in New Delhi after defeating Turkiye's Bengisu Ercetin-Nazlican Inci today. In the second-round match at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, the fifth seeds, who received a first-round bye, needed just 34 minutes to secure a 21-16, 21-13 victory.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Pearly-Thinaah will face either Turkiye's Yasemen Bektas-Sinem Yildiz or Indonesia's Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma-Meilysa Trias Puspitasari in the third round. Thinaah mentioned that the opportunity to train together more consistently over the past two weeks had helped them improve their game. She noted improvements in movement, communication, and trust, while acknowledging some misunderstandings still needing work.

Meanwhile, national men's singles player Leong Jun Hao was eliminated by eighth seed Li Shi Feng of China, losing 19-21, 19-21 in the second round. K. Letshanaa faced a similar outcome in the women's singles, losing 16-21, 9-21 to third seed Wang Zhi Yi of China.

Earlier, husband-and-wife pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie advanced to the last 16 after defeating the United States' Chen Zhi Yi-Francesca Corbett 21-15, 21-16. The 10th seeds will face eighth seeds Cheng Xing-Zhang Chi of China in the third round.