Adkar keeps Indian flag high reaching girls’ finals at ITF J3 Pune

• Muni and Khosla Indian Pair in doubles final

Local girl Vaishnavi Adkar kept the Indian Flag flying high entering her third consecutive final of the season as she defeated top seeded Aruzhan Sagandikova of Kazakhstan 6-2, 6-4  in the girls semi-finals of the Gadre Marine MSLTA – ITF Junior Grade-3 U18 tennis Championships organized by Deccan Gymkhana Under the auspices of ITF, Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association and Pune Metropolitan District Tennis Association and played at the Deccan Gymkhana Tennis Courts on Friday.

With this win Adkar remained the lone  Indian challenger in the final as Yuvan Nandal conceded a match in boys section after suffering elbow injury during the match.

Adkar will now face third seeded Japanese girl Sara Saito who defeated fifth seeded Zhanel Rustemova of Kazakhstan 6-4, 7-6 (7-4)in two hour 7 minutes tussle .

Adkar, supported by Lakshya – Hodek is back on the tennis circuit after a nine months injury gap due to an ACL tear.

“I feel great here. After my surgery I was nervous but now I feel much better and I am playing better than before. I love playing at Deccan Gymkhana, the courts are very fast which matches with my game strength. Getting a rain break was like blessing in disguise as it helped me to recover,” said Adkar who trains under Kedar Shah at Bounce Tennis Academy.

Before playing in her home tournament, Adkar travelled to Guwahati and Delhi to compete in ITF tournaments.

In Guwahati, Adkar emerged winner while in Delhi, she settled for runner up trophy.

Nandal concedes

Yuvan Nandal who has enjoyed playing conditions in Pune so far, had to end the tournament on disappointing note as he  suffered right hand elbow injury when top seeded Woobin Shin of Korea was leading the match 7-6 (7-2), 4-1.

Shin will face third seeded Tanapatt Nirundorn of Thailand who defeated sixth seeded Max Batyutenko of Kazakhstan 6-4, 7-5.

In boys doubles semifinal round Indian pair Muni Ananth Mani and Rushil Khosla upset top seeded Tanapatt Nirundorn of Thailand and Woobin Shin of Koria 4-6, 7-6(1), 12-10 to enter in finals.

Following are the results:

Singles: Girls: Semifinal Round:
Vaishnavi Adkar(IND) bt Aruzhan Sagandikova (KAZ) [1] 6-2, 6-4;  Sara Saito (JPN) [3] bt Zhanel Rustemova (KAZ) [5] 6-4, 7-6(4);

Boys:
Woobin Shin(KOR)[1] bt Yuvan Nandal (IND) 7-6(2), 4-1 conceded; Tanapatt Nirundorn(THA)[3] bt Max Batyutenko (KAZ) [6] 6-4, 7-5;

Doubles: Semifinal Round: Boys:
Muni Ananth Mani (IND) / Rushil Khosla (IND) bt Tanapatt Nirundorn (THA) / Woobin Shin (KOR) [1] 4-6, 7-6(1), 12-10;