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Malaysian badminton struck gold twice in a thrilling Sunday showdown at Bangkok’s Nimibutr Stadium – and we’re talking both glory and cold, hard cash here.
Power duo Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and the dynamic women’s pair Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah each walked away with a cool USD37,525 (about RM161,191) after claiming their respective titles at the TOYOTA Thailand Open 2025.
The windfall is all theirs to keep – BAM doesn’t take a cut, and Malaysia’s tax-free policy on sports prizes means every sen goes to the champions.
The women’s pair, ranked world No. 4 and top-seeded in Bangkok, defeated their Korean opponents in a straight-set victory that took 58 minutes.
For Pearly-Thinaah, this win tastes especially sweet – it’s their first title since their Hong Kong Open triumph last September.
Beyond just winning the title, Pearly-Thinaah created history as Malaysia’s first-ever women’s doubles champions at the Thailand Open since the tournament began in 1984.
@racquetttt2 CHAMPIONS #badminton #badmintonmalaysia #toyotathailandopen2025 #pearlytan #thinaahmuralitharan #pearlythinaah #pearthin ♬ Heart Attack – Demi Lovato
Malaysian Pairs Turn Pressure into Gold
The men’s story packed even more drama, punctuated by lung-busting rallies that had the Nimibutr Stadium crowd on the edge of their seats.
Aaron-Wooi Yik, who previously finished as runners-up in 2020, had to dig deep, really deep, against Danish underdogs ranked 75th in the world.
The Thai crowd’s overwhelming support for the Danish underdogs was understandable, given Aaron-Wooi Yik had earlier dashed local hopes by eliminating home favourites Kittinupong Kedren-Dechapol Puavaranukroh 21-17, 21-13 in the semi-finals.
After a nail-biting first set loss, they bounced back like champions to win their first-ever Super 500 win, proving why they’re Malaysia’s top dogs in men’s doubles.
Aaron-Wooi Yik, seeded second in the tournament, will add this trophy to their Asian Championships gold from last month.
Both Malaysian pairs are now riding high into next week’s PERODUA Malaysia Masters 2025 on home turf.
It’s not a bad payday for a week’s work in Bangkok, right?
@sookamalaysia Malaysia boleh! Tahniah pada pemain Malaysia! #fyp #BadmintonMalaysia #ThailandOpen2025 #AaronChia #SohWooiYik ♬ original sound – sooka malaysia
READ MORE: [Watch] Game Point: Pearly-Thinaah’s Make-or-Break BAM Showdown
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