The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : A surprise package for many players

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 19, 2006

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

A surprise package for many players

Kalyan Ashok

Bangalore: The curtain descends on the WTA Bangalore Open on Sunday, and it is time to check out what the players felt about the event and the city.

For some new foreign contenders, the city was an eye-opener. Still India is imagined as a nation with snake charmers and cows roaming around the place, but Bangalore's colonial-turned neo-Western ambience was a surprise package for many.

WTA supervisor Melanie Heuer of Germany, who was charmed by the city's weather, said, "It is freezing back home and Bangalore had the right kind of weather. Nicely warm during the day and with a little bit of chill in the evening, it sure had a perfect weather for playing tennis. The facilities for the event were good... I guess you should have more of it here." Shahar Peer, the second-seeded Israeli girl, who made an early exit, too was pleased with the settings. "I didn't get to see the place much, but the stadium and courts are good," she said.

Camille Pin, who upset Sania Mirza, was all praise for the crowd. "They were nice, despite the fact that I beat the favourite Sania,'' she said.

Alona Bondarenko from Ukraine, who spoke about the warmth of the people, said, "Everyone was friendly, and arrangements were good. We liked playing here.'' Alona had many sympathisers on Friday when she lost a close tie to Martina Czink.

For the Indian contender, Isha Lakhani, who went down fighting in the second round, the Bangalore Open was memorable too. "I have played few Future events here, and for the first time, I got to play WTA main draw here. It was a good experience," she said.

Many players, however, regretted that they could not get to see the city much because of the busy match schedule, and rigours of the tour mostly kept them on the courts and at the hotel.

The public response to the event had been a little lukewarm. Unfortunately, the lack of Indian interest (read Sania) and the fact that the championship clashed with India-Pakistan ODI curtailed the turnout.

But that should not deter the KSLTA from holding the event for the next couple of years. An official said, "If all goes well, we hope to run it here for the next two years."

WTA, welcome again to Bangalore!

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