SANDEEPTI SINGH RAO OUTPLAYS TOP SEED SANYA SINGH, BOOKS TICKET TO JAPAN

Sandeepti Singh Rao outplayed top seed Sanya Singh 6-1, 6-1 to make the girls final of the Road to Japan National series under-16 tennis tournament at the DLTA Complex here on Friday.

With her attacking style of play, the 15-year-old Sandeepti could assert herself against the defensive Sanya, who incidentally was celebrating her 16th birthday.

Having made the final of the ITF junior tournament in Dehradun in March, and having blanked Sanya in their previous meeting in the domestic circuit, Sandeepti had the confidence to confirm her ticket to Japan for the event scheduled to be in October.

In the final, Sandeepti will be challenged by Sharannya Gaware who was equally authoritative in her 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Sudipta Senthilkumar.

Strongly built and easy on her feet, the free-stroking Sharannya, supported by Lakshya, packs a punch in her strokes and that should make for a lively final.

Sanya, of course, has been doing well in the doubles, as she has won a title from two finals in the ITF junior circuit. She bagged the doubles title with Srujana Rayarala, to give herself a birthday present.

The boys packed a lot of fireworks in their game, as top seed Krishan Hooda bounced back from a matchpoint in the ninth game of the decider to beat Divesh Gahlot 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(2).

In the final, Krishan will play Nishant Dabas who tamed second seed Sushant Dabas in another cracker of a contest, even though a score of 6-4, 6-2 did not give a hint about the turmoil in the match.

Divesh Gahlot and Sushant Dabas could not provide a winning end to the day, as they failed to capitalise on a whirlwind start in the doubles final and were beaten 0-6, 6-1, 10-5 by Dhruv Tangri and Uddayvir Singh.

The champion and runner-up in the boys and girls singles will fly to Japan for the Masters tournament, organised by the International Lawn Tennis Cub.

The results:

Boys (semifinals): Krishan Hooda bt Divesh Gahlot 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(2); NIshant Dabas bt Sushant Dabas 6-4, 6-2.

Doubles (final): Dhruv Tangri & Uddayvir Singh bt Divesh Gahlot & Sushant Dabas 0-6, 6-1, [10-5].

Girls (semifinals): Sandeepti Singh Rao bt Sanya Singh 6-1, 6-1; Sharannya Gaware bt Sudipta Senthilkumar 6-1, 6-1.

Doubles (final): Sanya Singh & Srujana Rayarala bt Chandrika Joshi & Kashish Bhatia 6-2, 6-1.