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ITF W35 Kalaburagi: Indian stars Ankita Raina and Zeel Desai advanced to the second round of the ITF W35 Kalaburagi on Wednesday with confident opening-round victories, while Karnataka’s Soha Sadiq showed early promise before bowing out after a dramatic shift in momentum at the Chandrashekhar Patil Stadium in Kalaburagi.

Eighth seed Ankita Raina produced a composed performance to defeat fellow Indian Sonal Patil 6-1, 6-3. Patil began by holding serve in the opening game, but Raina quickly took control, winning the next six games to seal the first set in commanding fashion.

The second set followed a similar pattern early on, with Raina racing to a 3-0 lead. Patil responded with determination, holding serve twice in succession to stay within striking distance. Even after Raina moved to 5-2 and looked set to close out the match comfortably, Patil battled back to make it 5-3. Raina, however, maintained her composure in the following game, finishing the match with authority to book her place in the next round.