The Day Opener:The first match saw Group D teams Mayank-Noble and Adi-Sonu facing each other in the do-or-die situation. The equation was such that Vinu-Apurva from this Group had already made it to the semifinals, and whosoever wins this game would be through to the semis as well. The game started with a bang with Mayank serving his trademark zooming and bouncing serves and winning the first game. However Adi struck back with equally good serves and took the score to 1 game each. After this game it was Noble’s serve and he started serving with ferocious speed. However Adi and Sonu audaciously held their racquets and were able to break Noble’s serves to gain a 2-1 lead. Mayank-Noble were not to be left behind and they immediately struck back by breaking Sonu’s serve to equalize the scores at 2-2. At this point came the crucial moment of the game when Adi-Sonu were able to neutralize Mayank’s serves by standing behind the baseline. They played some beautiful returns along with some aggressive net play thus gaining a 3-2 lead. Notwithstanding the break of serve, Mayank and Noble fought hard to come back in the game with some wonderful winners and classy net-play thus entertaining the crowd to the fullest. Mayank was at his controlled best making no errors whatsoever, with Noble fully complementing him at the net with those cheeky drop-shots and booming serves. Adi with his infectious energy was running all over the court covering both baseline and net. Sonu was also in a good form making no errors in her returns. At one point of the game, both Mayank and Noble came to the net thus blocking her shots, and Sonu played a lob which dropped just inside the baseline. After some enervating cross court rallies and some fiery shots by all the players, Adi-Sonu emerged winners and the final score line read 8-5 which does not truly reflect the nail-biting action which everyone witnessed.
Who would take the top spot?Match 2 saw the match of the top performing teams in Group B with the strong team of Raj-Sampath playing the classy pair of Nishanth-Kanchan. This was being touted as the biggest game of the Group-B and had a lot hinging upon it, with the winner of this game most likely to gain the top-spot in their group. Hard-hitting Raj was complemented with controlled game of Sampath, and facing them were two gracious players in Kanchan and Nishanth. It was game-on from the first game itself with Kanchan starting with her servers. The rallies were fast and long with Raj playing aggressive at the net, Sampath not making a single mistake anywhere and Nishanth and Kanchan returning with such composure which is only seen in pros. None of the serves were broken and after 4 games the score read 2-2. At this crucial juncture it was Kanchan again who was serving, and with some beautifully controlled shots Raj-Sampath were able to break her serve thus gaining a 3-2 lead. However Kanchan and Nishanth were not to be left behind, and they immediately broke back Raj’s serves to equalize the scores at 3-3. This was when Sampath rose to the occasion with his flawless execution of rallies, which led to some unforced errors by Kanchan and Nishanth. Raj and Sampath won two consecutive games thus gaining a lead of 5-3. Kanchan then held on to her serve for the 9th game taking the score to 5-4, but this was Sampath’s day as he served out his game winning the same thus resulting in the winning score of 6-4.
In the third but very crucial match for deciding both the places for semis in Group A, Soppin/ Harpal who had one win and one loss were up against Tanmay / Lopa who had won both their previous encounters. Soppin / Harpal started off well and immediately took lead over Tanmay / Lopa. Some good shots and serve from Harpal, who was a surprise package today, provided the support to Soppin who was at his best as usual. Tanmay did play some wonderful shots and winners but that was not sufficient for them to prevent Soppin and Harpal from victory as they lost 6 – 2. Interestingly with this defeat, Tanmay and Lopa who were at the top of the table from Group A have now moved to third place making way for Soppin / Harpal and Ajeet/Vinayak into the semis who are now the topper and runners respectively in Group A.
In the third but very crucial match for deciding both the places for semis in Group A, Soppin/ Harpal who had one win and one loss were up against Tanmay / Lopa who had won both their previous encounters. Soppin / Harpal started off well and immediately took lead over Tanmay / Lopa. Some good shots and serve from Harpal, who was a surprise package today, provided the support to Soppin who was at his best as usual. Tanmay did play some wonderful shots and winners but that was not sufficient for them to prevent Soppin and Harpal from victory as they lost 6 – 2. Interestingly with this defeat, Tanmay and Lopa who were at the top of the table from Group A have now moved to third place making way for Soppin / Harpal and Ajeet/Vinayak into the semis who are now the topper and runners respectively in Group A.Final Scores :
Aditya / Sonu bt Mayank / Noble : 8 – 5
Raj / Sampath bt Kanchan / Nishanth : 6 – 3
Soppin / Harpal bt Tanmay / Lopa : 6 – 2
Aditya / Sonu bt Mayank / Noble : 8 – 5
Raj / Sampath bt Kanchan / Nishanth : 6 – 3
Soppin / Harpal bt Tanmay / Lopa : 6 – 2
Story and Photos by Adi and Mani.
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