BANGKOK: When women’s doubles shuttlers M. Thinaah and Pearly Tan fell to their knees and embraced each other after winning the final, it was not all joy. In fact, it was more relief.

The world No. 2 pair had just landed the gold in their maiden SEA Games after a titanic tussle with Indonesia’s Febriana Dwipuji-Meilysa Puspitasari, a gold that Malaysia had last won 10 years ago.