The Hindu : Sport : Somdev Devvarman and Rodionova given top billing

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Oct 02, 2010
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Sport

Sport - Sports : General

Somdev Devvarman and Rodionova given top billing

Kunal Diwan

— PHOTO: S. Subramanium

Sania Mirza, along with Poojashree Venkatesh (left), Rushmi Chakravarty and Nirumpama Sanjeev, having a look at the draw during a practice session.

NEW DELHI: India's Somdev Devvarman and Australia's Anastasia Rodionova have been given top billing in the men's and women's singles as tennis makes its debut in the Commonwealth Games.

Formalising the draw at the R.K. Khanna Tennis Stadium on Friday, Wayne McKewen, Tournament Referee, also announced a top-seed status for Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi in the men's doubles and Aussies Rodionova and Sally Peers in women's doubles.

In the mixed doubles, Rodionova and Paul Hanley start favourites, followed by the second-seeded home pair of Paes and Sania Mirza. India's other team, comprising Bopanna and Nirupama Sanjeev, has drawn the top-seeded Aussie duo in the first round.

Devvarman meets Mullings

Devvarman, ranked 100 in the world, will begin his singles campaign against Bahamas' Devin Mullings, whose career-best ranking was 886 in 2007. His stiffest test is expected to come from Australia's Peter Luczak, the second seed, who is currently No.130 in the ATP list.

The top four seeds in women's singles, including second-seeded Sania, have all received byes in the first round, reducing their burden by a match. The women's individual event, consisting of a 28-strong field, is headed by the 65th-ranked Rodionova.

Partners on the Tour, Bopanna and Pakistan's Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi might find themselves facing each other. While Bopanna has paired up with Devvarman – the pair is seeded second – Qureshi will partner Atiq Khan in the men's doubles.

Both Bopanna and Qureshi are also unseeded candidates in the 32-strong men's singles draw. The event begins on October 4.

The seedings: Singles: Men: 1. Somdev Devvarman (Ind), 2. Peter Luczak (Aus), 3. Matt Ebden (Aus), 4. James Ward (Eng), 5. Greg Jones (Aus).

Women: 1. Anastasia Rodionova (Aus), 2. Sania Mirza (Ind), 3. Katie O'Brien (Eng), 4. Sally Peers (Aus), 5. Heather Watson (Ggy).

Doubles: Men: 1. Leander Paes & Mahesh Bhupathi, 2. Rohan Bopanna & Somdev Devvarman, 3. Kenneth Skupski & Ross Hutchins (Eng), 4. Paul Hanley & Peter Luczak,

Women: 1. Anastasia Rodionva & Sally Peers, 2. Sarah Borwell & Anna Smith (Eng), 3. Olivia Rogowska & Jessica Moore (Aus), 4. Sania Mirza & Rushmi Chakravarthi.

Mixed: 1. Anastasia Rodionova & Paul Hanes, 2. Leander Paes & Sania Mirza, 3. Sarah Borwell & Kenneth Skupski, 4. Anna Smith & Ross Hutchins .

Meanwhile, the Indian women's tennis team commenced the business end of its preparation for the Commonwealth Games with a two-hour hit on Centre Court at the R.K. Khanna Tennis Stadium on Friday.

Under the close observation of coach Enrico Piperno, Sania Mirza, Rushmi Chakravarthi, Nirupama Sanjeev and Poojashree Venkatesha traded places at the net and the baseline, spending some time in various positions of play.

While Rushmi looked forbidding, solid and consistent, Poojashree impressed with her double-handed backhands, slamming passes left and right. Sania, watched over by her parents and sister, went through the normal preparatory drills, while Nirupama, 33, and on the comeback trail, struggled to keep up with her younger teammates.

Working on fitness

“I really have to work on my fitness. I obviously cannot compete in singles, but I am partnering a ‘star' in the mixed event, so let's see how it goes,” she said.

Competing in the women's doubles (with Poojashree) and mixed doubles (with Rohan Bopanna), Nirupama revealed it was an ITF match win in Pune last year, over an opponent ranked somewhere in the 400s, which made her revisit her past vocation with some degree of seriousness, after seven long years, marriage, motherhood and a tennis academy had come between her and active participation.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport