Thaindian News

Kolkata, Nov 19 (IANS) The Indian challenge ended with both Sunitha Rao and Sanaa Bhambri losing in the singles pre-quarter finals and the country’s other players also crashing out of the doubles at the Gujarat NRE Coke $50,000 ITF women’s Challenger tennis meet here Wednesday. Britain’s Emily Webley-Smith took just 65 minutes to rout the Indian hope, the fifth seed Sunitha Rao 6-2, 6-1. Webley-Smith broke Sunitha in the third and seventh games to take the first set 6-2 in 42 minutes, before running away with the second set in about half the time on the synthetic court of the Bengal Tennis association.

The other Indian hope, wild card Sanaa Bhambri survived for 71 minutes before bowing out 3-6, 1-6 to second seed Ayumi Morita from Japan.

The first seven of the nine games went into deuces. Bhambri was broken in the very first game but she paid back the compliments in the second. The Japanese broke Sanaa twice more in the fifth and ninth games to pocket the set in 47 minutes. The second set was a no-contest, as Morita demolished Sanaa in only 22 minutes to wrap up the match.

In doubles, second seeds Chinese Taipei’s Chin-Wei Chan and Yi Chan got the better of the Indian pair of Rushmi Chakravarthi and Isha Lakhani 6-4, 7-6 (7-3).

The other Indian combination of Sunitha Rao and Shikha Uberoi went down fighting against top seed Chinese pair Jing-Jing Lu and Sheng-Nan Sun 4-6, 7-5 (5-10).

Qualifier Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia marched into the quarters defeating Chia-Jung Chuang of Chinese Taipei 6-3, 6-3 in 65 minutes. Jovanovski took the first set in 32 minutes with the help of a solitary break in the sixth game. The second set, lasting 31 minutes, saw Chuang broken in the fifth and seventh games while Jovanovsi lost her serve in the sixth.

Results of Matches played Wednesday (Read Player, Status/Seed, Country, ITF Ranking):

Singles Pre Quarter Finals:

Noppawan Lertcheewakarn (Tha)(384) beat Melanie South (1)(GBr)(116) 2-6,6-3,6-4; Elora Dabija (Rou)(433) beat Leonie Mekel (Ned)(460) 2-6,6-4,6-4; Sophie Ferguson (Aus)(308) beat Agnes Szatmari (4)(Rou)(200) 7-6(7-5),6-4; Ksenia Palkina (7)(Kgz)(224) beat Julia Glushko(Isr)(355) 7-5,7-5; Kai-Chen Chang (8)(Tpe)(232) beat Suchanun Viratprasert (Tha)(266) 6-0,6-2; Bojana Jovanovski (Q)(Srb)(561) beat Chia-Jung Chuang (Tpe)(462) 6-3,6-3
Emily Webley-Smith (!)(GBr)(475) beat Sunitha Rao (5)(Ind)(206) 6-2,6-1; Ayumi Morita (2)(Jpn)(118) beat Sanaa Bhambri (WC)(Ind)(502) 6-3,6-1.

Doubles Quarter Finals:

Jing-Jing Lu (Chn) & Sheng-Nan Sun (Chn)(1)(267) beat Sunitha Rao (Ind) & Shikha Uberoi (Ind)(589) 6-4,5-7,(10-5); Sophie Ferguson (Aus) & Alexis Prousis (USA) beat Kai-Chen Chang (Tpe) & I-Hsuan Hwang (Tpe)(4)(401) 3-6,7-6(7-4),(10-4); Laura Siegemund (Ger) & Agnes Szatmari (Rou)(3)(393) beat Ankita Bhambri (Ind) & Sanaa Bhambri (Ind)(772)
6-1,4-6,(11-9); Chin-Wei Chan (Tpe) & Yi Chen (Tpe)(2)(328) beat Rushmi Chakravarthi (Ind) & Isha Lakhani (Ind)(792) 6-4,7-6(7-3).