India full ‘Venture Playoff’ at BJK Cup
Pune: What began off with the younger weapons taking cost ended with the older guard of the Indian ladies’s tennis group offering the final touch. These on the bench quietly crept up in the direction of the sting of the gamers’ space, ready in anticipation as 31-year-old Prarthana Thombare and 32-year-old Ankita Raina reached match level within the deciding rubber of the Asia/Oceania Group 1 tie in opposition to South Korea within the Billie Jean King Cup.
And as soon as Thombare’s forehand down-the-line winner hit the backboard, coach, captain, gamers, physios – the complete squad – charged onto centre court docket of the Balewadi Tennis Stadium in Pune. With the win, India had reached the playoff stage of the premier ladies’s group occasion for less than the second time.
Over the previous week, the Indians took on New Zealand, Thailand, Hong Kong, Chinese language Taipei and Korea in a round-robin format, with solely the highest two groups making it by means of to the playoff. They misplaced in a tie solely to New Zealand – the opposite group to have certified.
Vishal Uppal, the group captain, had instructed this publication earlier than the competitors that this group of gamers offered a beforehand unseen “depth in singles.” And so they utilized each little bit of it.
When Sahaja Yamalapalli was injured, Vaidehi Chaudhari stepped in and offered two essential wins. In the meantime, Shrivalli Bhamidipaty proved to be a stable asset for the group, because the 23-year-old received every of the 5 matches she performed by means of the week. Together with, combating from behind to offer India a profitable begin on Saturday.
The participant from Hyderabad beat Sohyun Park 5-7, 6-3, 7-6(5) within the first match of the day earlier than Sahaja misplaced to Dayeon Again 6-3, 6-4 because the Koreans levelled the tie.
The tie between the 2 nations was basically a shoot-off for the ultimate playoff spot. And with the rating at 1-1, the accountability fell on the shoulders of Raina and Thombare to safe the win.
The duo has been blowing cold and hot this week. They misplaced three doubles matches this week. However on Friday, they performed with aggression and intent. Raina was robust off the baseline whereas Thombare was agile and fast on the internet. They rallied, moonballed, smashed, volleyed and hammered dwelling winners to seal the tie with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Park and Dabin Kim.
Amidst the celebrations on the court docket, Uppal made clear one essential message. “Your women have plenty of potential,” he introduced to the gang. “Again your women.” What he had dubbed as ‘Venture Playoffs’ for his group initially of the week was now full.
