Sahil Deshmukh and Alex Solanki held their nerve to clinch a tight boys’ doubles final in the YMCA-TTT ITF juniors (under-18) tennis tournament here on Friday.
Having split the first two sets with Paramveer Singh Bajwa and Param Pun, Deshmukh and Solanki found themselves match-point down at 8-9 in the match tie-break before triumphing 6-7(3), 6-3, 11-9.
The contest featured imaginative tennis, particularly from Paramveer and Pun, both of whom used the chipped lob return to throw the net-rushing Deshmukh and Solanki off their rhythm.
Paramveer, who had made the singles final earlier, caught the eye with his languid shot-making and opportunistic volleying. But Deshmukh and Solanki were the more consistent team under pressure, especially off the ground. They also showed off good touch around the net, several short-angled volleys either opening the court up or ending points outright. And Deshmukh sent down un-returnable first serves when most needed.
The girls’ final, in comparison, was a straightforward affair.
Sathwika Sama and Shivani Swarup Ingle proved too solid for Shivani Amineni and Humera Begum Shaik in a 6-1, 6-2 victory.
Amineni and Humera briefly looked as if they might force a competitive second set, but the top seeds swiftly pulled away.
The results:
Singles: Semifinals: Boys: Paramveer Singh Bajwa bt Abhinav Sanjeev 4-6, 6-4, 6-3; Rian Pandole bt Ishaq Eqbal 6-3, 6-1.
Girls: Zeel Desai bt Lalita Devarakonda 6-2, 4-6, 7-5; Shivani Amineni bt Sathwika Sama 6-4, 4-1 retd.
Doubles: Final: Boys: Sahil Deshmukh & Alex Solanki bt Paramveer Singh Bajwa & Param Pun 6-7(3), 6-3, 11-9.
Girls: Sathwika Sama & Shivani Swarup Ingle bt Shivani Amineni & Humera Begum Shaik 6-1, 6-2.
