The Hindu : Sport / Tennis : Double delight for Nimisha and Kamal

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Saturday, Feb 16, 2008
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Sport - Tennis

Double delight for Nimisha and Kamal

Principal Correspondent

BANGALORE: The top-seeded Nimisha Mohan pocketed the girls’ under-18 title with minimum fuss in the Tennis Advantage AITA Talent Series tournament which concluded at the St. John’s Sports Complex Courts here on Friday.

In a one-sided final, Nimisha defeated the second seed Rachita Sarda 6-2, 6-1. Nimisha had earlier teamed up with Rachita to win the doubles crown, defeating top-seeds Ravina and Shalaka 4-6, 6-2, 10-8.

The second-seeded pair of Nimisha and Rachita came back strongly in the second set to draw level and then went on to clinch the super tie-breaker.

In the singles final, Nimisha’s resilience and power-packed forehands proved too strong for Rachita. Nimisha quickly raced to a 4-1 lead in the first set with two service breaks. Though Rachita broke back in the sixth game to make it 2-4, she failed to hold serve in the next game, a double fault being the final nail.

Nimisha won the set with ease and continued her dominance in the second. The lone cheer for Rachita was when she held serve in the opening game and then watched in despair as Nimisha won six games in a row to complete the formalities.

The boys’ under-18 final was also lop-sided with the top seed S. Kamal defeating the second-seeded Uttam Singh 6-2, 6-1. Earlier, Kamal, along with Sharan Patil, won the doubles title with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Ajinka Pawar and Nikhil Reddy.

The day’s lone upset came when Nikhil Reddy, seeded seventh, shocked the fourth-seeded Rohit Gowda 6-2, 6-3 in the boys’ under-14 final.

In the girls’ section, the top-seeded S.P. Ritu routed the second seed Preethi Ujjini 6-3, 6-0.

The results (all finals): Boys: Under-18: Singles: S. Kamal bt Uttam Singh 6-2, 6-1; Doubles: S. Kamal & Sharan Patil bt Ajinka Pawar & Nikhil Reddy 6-3, 6-4. Under-14: Nikhil Reddy bt Rohit R. Gowda 6-2, 6-3.

Girls: Under-18: Singles: Nimisha Mohan bt Rachita Sarda 6-2, 6-1; Doubles: Nimisha & Rachita bt Ravina & Shalaka 4-6, 6-2, 10-8 (super tie-breaker). Under-14: S.P. Ritu bt Preethi Ujjini 6-3, 6-0.