Husband-and-wife team Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Jemie Lai, and top women’s doubles pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah did not go out without a fight, however, but their opponents proved they were the better sides today.

Soon Huat-Shevon showed early promise by winning the first game against China’s Jiang Zhen Bang-Huang Dong Ping, but eventually lost 21-18, 8-21, 10-21 in 44 minutes at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.

Pearly-Thinaah fell to Japan’s top pair of Nami Matsuyama-Chiharu Shida in straight games, by a score of 17-21, 19-21, in their 41-minute clash.

Soon Huat-Shevon last reached the All England semi-finals in 2019, and have never cleared the early rounds in the last five championships.

Pearly-Thinaah, playing in an adjacent court, put up a gallant display despite Pearly being obviously troubled by an ankle injury she sustained last night.

She was seen walking at times to avoid landing on her ankle after a return.

At one point in the second game when Thinaah’s racket strings snapped, Pearly threw her’s to her partner, limped out, and got herself a new racket to continue playing.

Pearly twisted her ankle in the second game of their last-16 match against Indonesian pair Apriyani Rahayu-Siti Fadia Ramadhanti last night, but the Malaysian duo went on to win in straight games.

It was their 12th loss to the Japanese pair in 13 encounters so far, including their defeat at the Olympic bronze medal play-off last August.