Bengaluru, (Samajweekly) Just when the proceedings of the first round matches of the on-going KSLTA ITF World Women’s Tour seemed to be going according to the script, the last match at the centre court of the KSLTA Stadium saw 19-year-old qualifier Shrivalli Rashmika Bhamidipaty take the day’s honours with an upset win over the second seed and one of the tournament favourites – Zeel Desai.
The 6-3, 7-5 win over her fancied rival gave her not only an entry into the quarterfinal but a whole lot of confidence for the rest of the week.
Meanwhile, top seed Rutuja Bhosale quelled the challenger of qualifier Shreya Tatavarthy in straight sets 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the last 16 stage along with third seed Sowjanya Bavisetti who brushed aside the challenge of Snehal Mane with a 6-1, 6-2 victory in just 55 minutes. Pranjala Yedlapalli who is seeded fourth also advanced to the next round with a 6-0, 7-5 over come-back girl Sharmada Balu.
It was a sweet revenge for Rashmika who had lost to Zeel three weeks ago at the Fenesta Nationals. In some flawless display of tennis, particularly her serves, Rashmika dominated the match completely. After an early break in the 2nd game, she went 2-0 up but the break in the sixth game changed the momentum for Rashmika who went on to win the set 6-3.
The second set saw Rashmika extend her good run and raced to a 5-1 lead. However, serving for the match, she lost her nerve and the serve which gave Zeel the momentum. The second seed clawed her way back into the game winning four games in a row to restore parity. However, Rashmika, despite opening the 11th game with a double fault, held her serve and then broke Zeel’s serve to emerge victorious.
