World No 6 pair Pearly-Thinaah had to dig deep into their reserves to overcome the scratch Japanese pair of Arisa Igarashi-Ayako Sakuramoto 21-19, 18-21, 21-13 in Shenzhen today.

The Malaysian pair is expected to have a tough time tomorrow as they face the world No 1 pair of Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning of China.

However, Pearly-Thinaah have already qualified for the season-ending World Tour Finals (WTF) in Hangzhou, China, next month.

The WTF is highly coveted, offering US$210,000 (RM937,500) for the doubles winners and also substantial points for the final ranking.

Earlier, world No 5 pair Aaron-Wooi Yik defeated their compatriots Nur Azriyn Ayub-Tan Wee Kiong 21-13, 21-19 in a 36-minute match to check into the quarter-finals.

Aaron-Wooi Yik’s win was crucial to remain in the hunt for a spot in the WTF.

They are currently ranked ninth in the list of qualifiers, while only the top eight will make it to Hangzhou. They are expected to qualify if they reach the semi-finals.

Aaron-Wooi Yik will meet China’s He Ji Ting-Ren Xiang Yu, who are world No 6, in the last eight tomorrow.

The other Malaysians who will feature in the quarter-finals are men’s doubles shuttlers Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani and mixed doubles pairs Chen Teng Jie-Toh Ee Wei and Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin.