The world No 8 duo beat Japanese pair Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara 21-13, 21-18 at the Arena Fyn in Odense, Denmark.

The husband-wife duo made fewer mistakes while their Japanese opponents made numerous unforced errors in a match that lasted 35 minutes.

Malaysia suffered a major blow in the opening round when seven of its representatives were knocked out. The biggest disappointments were the performance by the world second and third ranked men’s doubles pairs Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani, respectively.

In the quarter-finals tomorrow, Soon Huat-Shevon will meet either compatriots and current world champions Cheng Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei or China’s Gao Jia Xuan-Wu Meng Ying.

They have yet to win any title this season, with their last success being at the Malaysian Open in May last year.