Fenesta Open: Top Seed Aarav Challani Knocked Out As Ribhav Saroha Eyes Double Crown

Fenesta Open: Top seed Aarav Challani knocked out as Ribhav Saroha eyes double crown (Top seed Aarav Challani knocked out as Ribhav Saroha eyes double crown in the 31st Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship at the DLTA Complex in New Delhi on Thursday. Photo credit: Fenesta Open)

Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship:  Boys' U-14 top seed Aarav Challani was knocked out of the 31st Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship at the DLTA Complex in New Delhi on Thursday, losing to Satya Chintagunta 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in the quarterfinals.

Chintagunta fought back after losing the opening set to secure his place in the semifinals. “First, it was a very exhausting match. We played for three hours. I am very happy to play with him. It was a good experience,” Chintagunta said after the win.

Reflecting on the match, he added, “In the second set, I was fully exhausted. I didn't know what to do. He started giving nice high balls. I found it very difficult. In the third set, I fought myself. I tried my best.”

Asked if he felt pressure playing against the tournament’s top seed, Chintagunta said, “I decided that I am going to win. Last time I played, I won. This time, I was sure that I am going to win.”

Meanwhile, Chandigarh’s Ribhav Saroha continued his bid for a double crown, advancing to the boys U-16 semifinals with a 6-2, 6-2 win over P. Nallagundla in a rain-interrupted quarterfinal. Having won the boys U-18 singles title last week, Saroha is now two wins away from completing a double triumph at the tournament. In the other boys U-16 semifinal, No. 8 seed Vivaan Mirdha will face Yashwin Dahiya after both players recorded straight-sets quarterfinal victories.

“It was 1-1 in the first set, 15-0 on my serve. And then we had the rain delay for, I think, 4 or 5 hours maybe,” Saroha said about dealing with the lengthy rain break. “I slept during that break, and I was able to regain the focus and energy. Then I was doing deep breathing exercises before the match so that I could just get back straight into the rhythm. I came back, and I was playing really well today. My strategy was to be more patient on the court and make him move and not make mistakes before him. And whenever I have a chance, to just commit fully and come in on the volley.”

Second seed Siddhi Pandey advanced to the girls' U-14 semifinals with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Saatvi Mardaniya. No. 10 seed Aaradhana Tehlan also reached the last four, rallying to beat No. 8 seed Purvi Patwa 1-6, 6-3, 6-0.

“I was playing against the sixth seed. She played excellently,” Pandey said after her win. “She recently won an ITF title. I was nervous going into the match, but I managed to pull it off. Nothing changed in the second set. I was able to use my brain more, and I’m happy to be in the semis. I just want to go with the flow and am looking forward to my next matches.”

In the boys U-14 event, second seed Puneeth Manohar and No. 9 seed Sujai Pothula also advanced to the semifinals. Manohar defeated eighth seed Adeshbir Ghuman 6-3, 6-1, while Pothula beat third seed Nibras Hussain 6-3, 6-4.

“I'm pretty pumped about it; I'm happy with the way I was able to play,” Manohar said after his win. “It was a dominant win for me. I was able to come out of it comfortably. My opponent did give a good fight, but he had some problems which helped me.”

In the girls U-16 event, No. 14 seed Khushi Kadian produced one of the day’s standout performances, beating Aahida Singh 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (7-2) in a marathon to reach the semifinals. Kadian was also scheduled to play her girls U-14 quarterfinal later Thursday.

Kadian was joined in the girls' U-16 semifinals by third seed Aaradhya Meena, fifth seed Akshita Antil and seventh seed Ranjhana Sangram.

Results:

Boys' U-16 Singles quarterfinals:

Ribhav Saroha [1] def. P. Nallagundla 6-2, 6-2

Yashwin Dahiya def. Yaj Malik [6] 6-3, 6-1

Vivaan Mirdha [8] def. Harsh Marwaha 6-4, 6-4

Kushagra Arora def. Monodip Dey [12] 6-2, 4-6, 6-1

Girls' U-16 Singles quarterfinals:

Aaradhya Meena [3] def. Shravee Deore 3-6, 6-4, 6-3

Akshita Antil [5] def. Pooja Nagaraj 6-4, 1-0 (retd.)

Ranjhana Sangram [7] def. Rishita Yadav 7-5, 6-3

Khushi Kadian [14] def. Aahida Singh 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (7-2)

Boys' U-14 Singles quarterfinals:

S. Chintagunta def. Aarav Challani [1] 4-6, 6-4, 6-1

Puneeth Manohar [2] def. Adeshbir Ghuman [8] 6-3, 6-1

Sujai Pothula [9] def. Nibras Hussain [3] 6-3, 6-4

Sparsh Patil [4] vs. Taanish Nanda [10]

Girls' U-14 Singles quarterfinals:

Siddhi Pandey [2] def. Saatvi Mardaniya [6] 6-4, 6-1

Zoha Qureshi [3] vs. Khushi Kadian [5]

Siddhi Pandey [2] def. Saatvi Mardaniya [6] 6-4, 6-1

Article Source: IANS