KUALA LUMPUR: Women's doubles Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah will face a new Japanese threat when they return to action after a short break at the Kumamoto Masters next week.

The world No. 7 will face Japan's scratch pair Mayu Matsumoto-Yuki Fukushima in the first round.

Matsumoto-Fukushima is one of the new combinations groomed by the Japan BA for next season's challenge on the World Tour.

Matsumoto and her former partner, Wakana Nagahara, were world champions in 2018 and 2019, also holding the world No. 1 ranking in 2019.

Fukushima and her former partner, Sayaka Hirota, were runners-up in the World Championships in 2017, 2018, and 2019.

Pearly-Thinaah has a decent record against Japanese pairs, though the untested Matsumoto-Fukushima pairing presents a fresh challenge as the Malaysians aim for a successful campaign in Kumamoto.

National coach Rosman Razak is confident Pearly-Thinaah will be ready for the tough opener next week.

"Many countries are experimenting with new pairings post-Paris Olympics, testing these combinations for next year's World Tour.

"I expect these new pairs to emerge strongly," Rosman said today.

"The women's doubles field is growing more competitive, and Pearly-Thinaah are aware of these developments.

"However, Pearly-Thinaah should not fear any pair. It is also about being prepared for the challenges."

Pearly-Thinaah took on Japan's world No. 5 Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi during the European leg of the World Tour last month.

The Malaysians won an intense semi-final at the Arctic Open Super 500 in Finland but were later defeated by the same pair in the Denmark Open Super 750 quarter-finals.