New Delhi, Mar 31 (Tennis News) The Indian Davis Cup team was on Thursday drawn to meet Norway in its next World Group I tie but the country's participation in the away contest is under doubt since it is clashing with the Asian Games in September.

The Davis Cup tie will be held either on September 16-17 or 17-18 while the tennis event at the Asian Games are scheduled to be held from September 10-14.

Even if the Indian players complete their Asian Games engagement by April 14, it will be practically difficult to reach Norway for the tie since the players need to acclimatise before they take to the courts.

It is going to be a challenge for the All India Tennis Association (AITA) to ensure that the country is represented in both the events.

"We and the Asian Tennis Federation had written to ITF about this, since 12 Asian countries are going to be affected by this. We had asked for a change in date but they did not agree, so we are filing an appeal to the ITF," AITA Secretary General Anil Dhupar told PTI.

"We want to play both the events and so do other nations. Pakistan is also filing a separate appeal. Let's see." Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Japan and India feature in World Group I while China, Lebanon, Thailand, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong and Indonesia feature in World Group II in this year's September ties.

Korea and Kazakhstan are part of the Davis Cup Finals. The Group stage of the event will played from September 14-18.

India and Norway, who have world number eight Casper Ruud in their ranks, have never clashed in the history of Davis Cup.

Their next best player is Viktor Durasovic, who is placed 329 in singles ATP chart.

"Every tie at this level is tough and when it is an away tie, it is a different challenge. It is too early to see if the draw is good for us. There is still a lot of time before the tie," said India coach Zeeshan Ali.

The Indian government is supporting tennis players like Rohan Boanna and Sania Mirza through the TOPS scheme and would like to see these established names competing for the medals at the Asian Games.

At the 2018 Games in Jakarta and Palembang, India's Ankita Raina and Prajnesh Gunneswaran won the singles bronze medals, while the pair of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan claimed the men's doubles gold. 

Also Read : First Yogasana senior national championship starts in Ahmedabad

News Source : PTI

New Delhi, Mar 8 (Tennis News) Veteran Sania Mirza and singles players Ankita Raina and Karman Kaur Thandi were on Tuesday named in the five-member Indian Billie Jean King Cup team for the Asia/Oceania Group I competition, beginning April 12 in Antalya, Turkey.

Rutuja Bhosale also kept her place in the side while Riya Bhatia replaced Zeel Desai in the squad.

India had lost 1-3 to Latvia in the play-offs in April last year to get back to the zonal competition.

India will compete with China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea Republic and New Zealand in round-robin format, where the top two nations will get a chance to compete in the play-offs.

Captain Vishal Uppal said the team will have to work hard to make it to the next stage.

"The selection committee felt that Riya being the higher-ranked deserves opportunity. She had missed out the last time due to COVID-19. It is a tough qualification zone. China and Japan will be the biggest threat," Uppal told PTI.

Uppal said ideally the players should have a preparatory camp since the matches will be on clay courts.

"We will see if we can get together and practice. The tournament is on clay. Our players are experienced on playing on European clay, they are familiar with the surface but homework is needed on matching up with these countries," he added.

Shalini Thakur will be the coach of the squad. 

Also Read : Bopanna-Sharan pair keeps India in World Group I after saving three match points

News Source : PTI

Melbourne, Jan 13 (Tennis News) Indian tennis player Yuki Bhambri suffered a straight sets defeat to Czech Republic's Tomas Machac in the Australian Open qualifiers here on Thursday, meaning the year's first Grand Slam will have no Indian participation in the singles main draw.

Bhambri lost his second round qualifying match 1-6 3-6.

Machac has a career high ATP singles ranking of 131 achieved on November 8 2021. He also has a career high doubles ranking of 470 achieved on November 1 2021.

On Tuesday, comeback man Bhambri had impressed with his attacking net play in a straight sets win but Ramkumar Ramanathan's 23rd attempt at cracking the singles main draw of a grand slam had ended in a first round defeat at the Australian Open qualifiers.

In the women's singles, Ankita Raina, ranked 203, was blown away by 120th ranked Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko 6-1, 6-0 in just 50 minutes. 

Also Read : Emma Raducanu falls in opening match at Sydney Tennis Classic

News Source : PTI

Melbourne, Jan 12 (Tennis News) Prajnesh Gunneswaran lost rhythm and energy before staging a mini comeback but eventually bowed out of the Australian Open Qualifiers with a second-round defeat against Germany's Maximilian Marterer, here on Wednesday. Up against a rival, who served big and packed a lot of power in his strokes but placed seven places below him at 228, Prajnesh lost 2-6 6-7(8) in one hour and 26 minutes.

With Prajnesh losing the battle of the left-handers, Yuki Bhambri is now ꪪthe only Indian surviving in the Qualifiers. Ramkumar Ramanathan and Ankita Raina have already exited the competition.

Down 2-6 2-4, Prajnesh managed to stretch it to a tie-breaker but squandered many a set point to lose the match.

Prajnesh handed the German two break chances in the fourth game of the match when he made a volley error after setting up the point and followed that up with wide forehand. The Indian saved the first chance with a big serve while Marterer's backhand slice landed just outside the baseline on the second.

An engrossing rally, that put Prajnesh's backhand to test against the German's forehand, ensued in the sixth game.

A smart backhand slice by Marterer, after no less than a 20-shot exchange ended the rally as Prajnesh hit the pick-up out, looking for a cross court forehand winner.

Prajnesh's strokes began to lose power and precision after losing that energy-sapping rally and the German began to dictate terms. Marterer hit a forehand winner to earn two break chances and converted the second for a 4-2 lead when Prajnesh made a forehand error.

The German came out serving big in the next game to consolidate his lead but Prajnesh seemed to have lost energy as unforced errors flew from his racquet as he surrendered the opening set.

Early in the second set, Prajnesh went from 40-0 to deuce and was down a breakpoint when he sent another shot long.

Marterer could not covert that but created one more chance when he had Parjnesh scurried to the net from the baseline to miss the ball. Already a break-up, Marterer held his own for a 4-1 lead.

A glimmer of hope came when the German allowed Prajnesh an opening by dropping his serve in the seventh game as it was back on serve.

Yuki Bhambri has a task cut out as he faces world number 130 Tomas Machac from Czech Republic. Yuki is ranked outside top-1000 and has entered the event, using his Protected Ranking (127). 

Also Read : Andy Murray records first victory of the season at the Sydney Tennis Classic

News Source : PTI

Melbourne, Jan 11 (Tennis News) Comeback-man Yuki Bhambri impressed with his match sharpness and attacking net play as the Indian progressed to the second round of Australian Open qualifiers with a comfortable straight set win over Joao Domingues, here on Tuesday.

Bhambri, who returned to the Grand Slam stage after 2018 US Open due to knee injury, beat his 248th ranked Portuguese rival 6-4 6-2 in just 68 minutes.

The 29-year-old Indian's serve looked decent and he played smartly as he charged the net to keep the points short.

He struggled to rein in his unforced errors in the beginning but earned his first breakpoint in the third game with a forehand winner after a long rally. Domigues served a double fault to hand the Indian first break of the match.

Bhambri served the next game at love with an ace to open up a 3-1 lead as Domingues also tried to charge to the net but Bhambri's powerful strokes pushed him back.

Bhambri fought off two break points on his serve in the sixth game. At deuce he pulled off a perfectly placed backhand slice and then dispatched up a half-volley for a 4-2 lead.

After getting one more break on account of his rival's unforced errors, Bhambri came out serving for the set but dropped the serve when his miscued overhead smash went out.

He wasn't in the position to play that shot but went for it, anticipating that lob would land in, behind him near the alley.

The Indian claimed the set when he served again.

In the second set too, it was Bhambri who got the first break as he led 4-2. He then served out the match without any fuss.

Ramkumar Ramanathan and Ankita Raina will also play their first rounds later in the day. 

Also Read : Safiullin, Evans among the best players from the 2022 ATP Cup

News Source : PTI

Melbourne, Jan 9 (Tennis News) India will keenly watch Yuki Bhambri's progress after his return to competitive tennis at the Australian Open Qualifiers while compatriot Ramkumar Ramanathan will enter the competition after a confidence-boosting maiden title triumph on the ATP Tour.

Bhambri, 29, lost invaluable three years due to a troubling knee but in a few tournaments that he has played going into the fresh season, the talented Delhi player seems ready for the grind yet again.

The close fight he had had against Aljaz Bedene in March was a testimony that he is ready for top flight tennis but his return came to halt again due to the same knee issue.

He began again in November, competing on the Challenger and ITF circuit and won a doubles titles with Saketh Myneni in Gurugram.

In the tune-up event for the first Grand Slam, Yuki tied up with old partner Michael Venus but lost first round in Melbourne at the ATP event.

He has got a decent draw as he has been pitted against Portugal's Joao Domingues, ranked 248 and clearing first round should not be an issue for Yuki. A good show at Melbourne Park will set the tone for him in the 2022 season.

In 22 attempts so far, Ramkumar has not yet succeeded in cracking the singles main draw of a Grand Slam and it's time that he breaks the losing trend. He will be up against Italian Gian Moroni, ranked 197.

Ramkumar has enjoyed fantastic results going into Australian Open. He has just won his maiden ATP doubles title in Adelaide with compatriot Rohan Bopanna and also won his maiden singles Challenger title in Manama, Bahrain in November.

His booming serve, a big heart to fight and nicely developed serve-and-volley game is there, just that he needs to put everything together at the big stage.

"It's amazing feeling to win my first ATP Title With Bopsy (Bopanna). A great week ended on a high note, always lived for these moments. Thankful to almighty God for all his blessings,"Ramkumar told PTI.

"I'll surely keep it going and give my best as always. I learnt a lot of things from Bopsy and Scott Davidoff (Bopanna's coach) who was part of our team. We combined well and didn't lose even one service game all week." Another Indian in the qualifying is Prajnesh Gunneswaran, who will open his campaign against Colombian Daniel Galan, ranked almost 100 places above him at 120.

In the women's singles, Ankita Raina will clash with Ukraine's Lesia Tsurenko, ranked 118.

Also Read : Bopanna and Ramkumar win Adelaide International with upset win over top seeds.

News Sources : PTI

New York, Sep 7 (Tennis news) Veteran Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna and his Croatian partner Ivan Dodig fought their hearts out before losing their men's doubles third round to fourth seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury at the US Open here.

Bopanna and Dodig, seeded 13th, lost 7-6(4) 4-6 6-7(3) to the Australian Open runners-up in a gruelling contest that lasted two hours and 30 minutes on Monday night.

With this defeat, India's challenge has ended at the last Grand Slam of the season.

Also read: Emma Raducanu breezes past Shelby Rogers at the US Open, Matteo Berrettini seeks Wimbeldon revenge against Novak Djokovic

Sania Mirza lost her both women's doubles and mixed doubles first rounds and Ankita Raina also lost in the women's doubles.

Prajnesh Gunneswaran, Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan could not not qualify for the singles main draw, falling in the Qualifiers. 

News source: PTI

(Tennis news): In Men’s Singles, Grigor Dimitrov has had a rough year as he retired midway in the second round match against Alexei Popyrin. Dimitrov suffered a foot injury in the third set forcing him to retire from the match, he also had retired in the 1st round of the French Open due to back problems. Popyrin was leading the match as he won the first two sets which were stretched till tiebreaks. The final scoreline read 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4), 4-0.

Stefanos Tsitsipas has spent over 7 hours in the first two matches at the US Open this year which has also resulted in a total of 120 winners. Tsitsipas had to dig deep against Adrian Mannarino who overcame a two set deficit to take the third set but was outplayed in the fourth set. Tsitsipas finished the match with a bagel and the scoreboard read 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 6-0.

In Women’s Singles, 17 year old prodigy and world number 23 Cori Gauff lost to former champion Sloane Stephens in the second round of an all american clash. Stephens started off the blocks well and did not let Gauff to have any mid match comeback, Stephens is looking her old back self as in form Gauff ended her campaign in the final slam of the year. The scorecard after an hour read 6-4, 6-2.

Simona Halep was on song as she trounced past Kristina Kucova to advance to the third round. Halep looks to be on form and had reached the semifinals in the US Open 6 years ago, Kucova put up a decent fight in the first set but in the second set was not able to hold on for long as Halep secured the win. The final score read 6-3, 6-1.

Sara Sorribes Tormo seems to be having a breakthrough year as she upset Karolína Muchová in her opening match. Sara played a defensive game as Muchová kept attacking throughout the match, Muchova paid her price as she played an error stricken game and ran out of steam in the second set tie break. The scoreboard read 6-2, 7-6 (7-3).

In Men’s Doubles, Máximo González and Simone Bolelli defeated the pair of Cameron Norrie and Jan-Lennard Struff in straight sets. Máximo González and Simone Bolelli only lost 6 points on 1st serve as they scored a 7-6 (7-5) , 6-3 victory.

In Women’s Doubles, Ankita Raina and Kateryna Bondarenko were crushed by seasoned and in form pair of Andreja Klepač and Darija Jurak in their opening match. Ankita Raina and Kateryna Bondarenko could only manage to win two games in the match. The final score was 6-1, 6-1.

Play had to be stopped in between on Louis Armstrong Stadium because the rain was coming in sideways in the openings under the roof. As a result many doubles matches were also affected and were delayed. Only two doubles matches have been completed so far and the mixed doubles is scheduled to start tomorrow.

Also read: Novak Djokovoc hits few minor bumps against Debutant in the US Open, Maxime Cressy upsets Pablo Carreño Busta

New York, Aug 27 (Tennis news) India's singles challenge came to an end at the US Open qualifiers after Prajnesh Gunneswaran was handed a straight-set defeat by American Christopher Eubanks in the second round here.

The world no.156 Indian, who was looking to make his second appearance in the US Open main draws, went down 3-6 4-6 to Eubanks, ranked 216th, in a 50-minute showdown on Thursday night.

Also read: Prajnesh advances to second round of US Open qualifiers

The 31-year-old Gunneswaran had qualified for the main draw in 2019, when he had lost to Russia's Danil Medvedev in the opening round.

The two other Indian players in fray in the men's singles qualifiers, Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan, made opening-round exits earlier in the week.

Nagal lost 5-7 6-4 3-6 to Argentina's Juan Pablo Ficovich while Ramkumar frittered away a one-set advantage to lose 6-4 6-7 (1) 4-6 to Russia's Evgeny Donskoy.

Ankita Raina was also ousted from the tournament after losing her first round match in women's singles qualifiers 3-6 6-2 4-6 to American Jamie Loeb.

News source: PTI

New York, Aug 26 (Tennis news) India's top-ranked tennis player Prajnesh Gunneswaran progressed to the second round of the US Open qualifiers with a straight set win over Brayden Schnur of Canada here.

Gunneswaran got the better of the world no. 232 Canadian 6-4 7-6 in one hour 37 minutes on Wednesday night.

The 31-year-old Indian will lock horns with American Christopher Eubanks in the next round.

Also read: Serena Williams pulls out of US Open due to injured right hamstring

Gunneswaran had qualified for the main draw of the tournament in 2019, when he had gone down to Russia's Danil Medvedev in the opening round.

The world no 156. is the only Indian left in the men's singles qualifiers as Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan made opening round exits.

Ankita Raina also exited after losing her first round in women's singles qualifiers to American Jamie Loeb. 

News source: PTI

New York, Aug 25 (Tennis news) Indian tennis players' struggle at the Grand Slam events continued as both Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan lost their respective first round singles matches to make an exit from the US Open qualifiers, here.

Nagal lost 5-7 6-4 3-6 to Argentina's Juan Pablo Ficovich in two hours and 22 minutes on Tuesday night.

Nagal had played in the Australian Open main draw early this year and had lost in the first round. He could not qualify for the French Open and missed the Wimbledon qualifiers due to an unrevealed injury.

Also read: Bopanna retains place in Indian team for Davis Cup tie against Finland in September

Ramkumar frittered away a one-set advantage to lose 6-4 6-7(1) 4-6 to Russia's Evgeny Donskoy in two hours and 35 minutes in his opening round.

It was Ramkumar's 21st attempt to qualify for the singles main draw of a Grand Slam since 2014.

Prajnesh Guneswaran is the only Indian left in the men's singles qualifiers. The left-hander is up against Canadian Brayden Schnur.

Ankita Raina has also exited after losing her first round in women's singles qualifiers to American Jamie Loeb. 

News source: PTI

Highs:

India reaches Men’s Archery quarter-finals with win over Kazakhstan

India’s trio of Atanu Das, Tarundeep Rai and Pravin Jadhav put up an impressive display to defeat Kazakhstan 6-2 to progress into the quarter-finals where they will face World Champions Korea.

Bhavani Devi beats Tunisia’s Ben Azizi to win India’s first ever fencing match in Olympic history

Indian fencer CA Bhavani Devi created history at her Olympic Games debut by defeating Tunisia’s Nadia Ben Azizi 15-3 to reach the Individual Sabre Round of 16. She is also India’s first ever fencer to represent the country in the Olympics and the 27 year old showcased a commanding performance.

Starting strong despite a delay in her bout, Bhavani Devi gave nothing away and raced to an 8-0 lead. Tunisia’s Azizi, being a lower ranked opponent was not given any space or time to regain momentum and remained on the backfoot with precise attacks.

Indian paddler Sharath Kamal progresses to third round after win against Portugal's Tiago Apolonia

Sharath Kamal progressed into the third round of table tennis men’s singles with a 4-2 (2-11 11-8 11-5 9-11 11-6 11-9) over Tiago Apolonia. Despite losing the first game 2-11, Kamal fought back with grit and determination to win the next two rounds. However, Apolonia did not give up without a fight and levelled the match in the fourth round with a score of 9-11.

Sharath’s coach Saumadeep Roy called for a timeout when the scores were tied 4-4 in the fifth set, which worked in the Indian’s favor as the veteran Indian paddler went on to lead 8-5, winning the fifth set and making it 3-2.

Lows:

Indian fencer Bhavani Devi’s journey ends at the Tokyo Olympics after defeat against Brunet in Round of 32

Despite Bhavani Devi’s journey at the Tokyo Olympics coming to an end, it seems like the beginning for her and Indian fencing after the 27 year old became the first Indian to win a fencing bout in Olympic history.

Facing World Number 3 and fourth seed Manon Brunet of France was always going to be a tough task but Bhavani Devi gave her a good fight, going into the break trailing 2-8 but collecting 5 more points in the 2nd round before eventually succumbing to a 7-15 loss.

Sutirtha loses in straight games the 2nd Round in Tokyo

After securing a hard fought win in the 1st round, Sutirtha Mukherjee lost to Fu Yu from Portugal in the Tokyo Olympics.

The Chinese born 42 year old secured victory taking the first four games in 23 minutes, each game lasting around 5 minutes. The score line read 11-3,11-3,11-5 and 11-5. With this result, Sutirtha’s Olympic campaign has come to an end and now there are two players left in the ray.

Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy lose to the world no 1 pair of Gideon and Sukamuljo of Indonesia

The Indian pair of Chirag Shetty and Rankireddy began the match well but the world number 1 pair of Gideon and Sukamuljo of Indonesia started asserting dominance over them and won the first set quite comfortably 21-13. The second set began in similar fashion with the Indian pair taking an early lead but the Indonesian pair overwhelmed them with a tremendous display of skill and won the second set 21-12.

Chirag Shetty and Rankireddy will now face Lane Ben and Vendy Sean of Great Britain in their final group match tomorrow

Indian men’s archery team outclassed by South Korea in the quarter-finals

It was always going to be a tough task for the Indian trio of Atanu Das, Pravin Jadhav and Tarundeep Rai to overcome South Korea in the quarter-finals of the men’s archery event, but few predicted such a whitewash.

In a one sided contest at the Yumenoshima Ranking Field, the South Korean team consisting of Kim Je Deok, Kim Woojin, and Oh Jinhyek reached the semifinals by defeating the Indian team 6-0.

India out of men’s skeet shooting; Angad Bajwa places 18th in qualification

Both Indian shooters who competed in the Tokyo Olympics today were unable to qualify for the final. Angad Bajwa finished 18th in the Men's Skeet qualification round, while Mairaj Khan came in 25th. With their exit, Indian sports fans will have to wait a little longer to see their country earn its first Olympic medal in the sport in Tokyo.

Despite competing in five events in three days, India has yet to win a single medal in Shooting, a sport they were anticipated to dominate at the Tokyo Olympics.

Sumit’s run comes to an end as Medvedev clinches victory in straight sets

After beating Denis Istomin in the first round, Sumit Nagal created history as the first Indian to secure a win in Olympic Singles in 25 years. Today in the 2nd round he faced Danii Medvedev from Russia and lost 6-2,6-1 in an hour and six minutes. The Russian is the current world number 2 and has good chances of winning a medal here.

Medvedev is also playing doubles this time partnering with Aslan Karatsev but lost their opening match to Lukas Klein and Filip Polasek from Slovakia. With his loss India has ended its Tennis run as Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina lost their opening match yesterday in Women’s Doubles.

Manika Batra loses to Austria’s Sofia Polcanova 4-0

Manika, world ranked at 63, lost four straight games to the 17 seeded table tennis player; 11-8, 11-2, 11-5, 11-7. Batra had earlier impressed on Sunday by beating world number 32 Margaryta Pesotska to reach the women's singles third round at the Tokyo Olympics.

Indian boxer Ashish Kumar loses 5-0 to China's Erbieke Tuoheta

Indian boxers have performed rather poorly at the Tokyo Olympics with Ashish Kumar becoming the third male boxer to lose in the first round alongside Vikas Krishna & Manish Kumar. The 27 year old boxer from Haryana started poorly in the first round but gradually improved his performance in the second. However, it was too little too late for Ashish Kumar who fell prey to Tuoheta’s combination punches.

Indian swimmer Sajan Prakash fails to qualify for semifinals at the Tokyo Olympics

Sajan Prakash finished fourth in the Men’s 200 metre butterfly stroke event with a timing of 1.57.22. With this result, Prakash finished 24th overall and failed to qualify for the semifinals at the Tokyo Olympics as only the top 16 move forward after all the heats are done.

Also read: Day 3: Mary Kom,PV Sindhu and Manika Batra keeping up India’s medal hopes

Germany beats India 2-0 in women's hockey at the Tokyo Olympics

The Indian Women’s hockey team lost 2-0 to  Germany in their second pool A match at the Oi Hockey Stadium South Pitch. The Germans are off to a strong start as they have won their second successive match, beating Britain in their first match by two goals to one. The first quarter saw Nike Lorenz strike in the 12th minute in a penalty corner. The second quarter did not see any goals from both teams, the third quarter saw Anne Katarina Schroder scoring the second goal for Germany in the 35th minute to give them a 2-0 win.
 

(Tennis sport news) Olympic 2021 Live Update: After beating Denis Istomin in the first round, Sumit Nagal created history as the first Indian to secure a win in Olympic Singles in 25 years. Today in the 2nd round he faced Danii Medvedev from Russia and lost 6-2,6-1 in an hour and six minutes. The Russian is the current world number 2 and has good chances of winning a medal here. He is also one of the few players expected to give Novak Djokovic a shock in the Tokyo Olympics. Medvedev is also playing doubles this time partnering with Aslan Karatsev but lost their opening match to Lukas Klein and Filip Polasek from Slovakia.

Also read: Indian men’s archery team outclassed by South Korea in the quarter-finals

With his loss India has ended its Tennis run as Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina lost their opening match yesterday in Women’s Doubles. 

Highs:
1)      PV Sindhu cruises through her first match:-
 PV Sindhu, a medal contender for India and a silver medalist at the 2016 Rio Olympics, won her first round match against Israel's Ksenia Polikarpova 21-7 21-10. Sindhu swept to the following round with a win in straight games, completing her victory with ease.
PV Sindhu will face Cheung Ngan of Hong Kong on 28th July and will be looking to comfortably go through.

2)   Indian rowers excel:-
In Lightweight Men's Double Sculls the repechages were held today and Team India consisting of Arvind Singh and Arjun Lal Jat have qualified for Semifinals A/B at the Tokyo Olympics.With a timing of 6:51.36 they finished ahead of Uzbekistan.They have qualified along with Poland and Spain who came first and second respectively.
The Semifinal A/B will be held on 27th morning at 11:28. They will hope to qualify for  Finals A as Spain and Belgium will look to come on top. India has only one team in rowing and both will look to capitalise on the opportunity.

3)   Manika continues her march forward:-
In Table Tennis Women’s Singles Manika Batra overcame Margaryta Pesotska from Ukraine in 7 games that lasted for almost an hour. The Ukranian took the first two games for a lead but couldn't hold the momentum as the Indian clinched the next two. The fifth game was won by Margaryta and was one game away from victory but Manika comprehensively won the last two games to emerge victorious. She even  won 9 consecutive points in the crucial game 6 as it was a must win game for her.
 Manika will be hoping to replicate her commonwealth games performance in this years Olympics and win India its first table tennis medal

4)    Mary Kom starts her campaign with a win in Tokyo:-
In Boxing Women’s fly 48-51kg six time World Champion and Olympic Medalist MC Mary Kom defeated Miguelina Hernandez from Dominican Republic 4:1 in the round of 32. The 38 year old has a 15 year difference with her opponent but showed no signs of aging or weakness.
This is her second and possibly her last Olympics but by looking at her form even that looks doubtful. In a sport where you have to be extremely tough and rough, she is still after all these years a favourite wherever she competes.

Also read:Day 2: India’s highs and lows at Tokyo Olympics

Lows:-
1)      Indian women fail to qualify for the 10m air pistol final:-
Disappointment continues for the Indian shooting team, as Manu finished 12th in the 53-woman field after the electronic trigger on her pistol failed in the middle of the second session of qualification. Manu placed 12th overall in the 53-woman field with 575 points.
Meanwhile, it has mostly been an up and down outing for world number one Yashaswini, who shot her way back into contention with a 98 in the second series, including scoring five 10s in the second part, after a subdued start. But she was not consistent enough to challenge the top guns, bowing out in 13th place with scores of 94, 98, 94, 97, 96 and 95 for an aggregate of 574.

2)      Pranati Nayak fails to qualify for the final:-
India’s run in the Artistic Gymnastics has come to an end as the lone competitor did not qualify for the finals in the Tokyo Olympics . Pranati Nayak was competing in the all around event and attempted all bars, beams, floor exercise and the vault. She scored 10.633 in the floor exercise, in the vault she scored an impressive 13.466,in uneven bars she scored 9.0333 and in the balance beam scored 9.433.

3)      Sania Mirza and Ankita bow out in the first round:-
Team India in the Women’s doubles lost to the Ukraninan team of Nadiia Kichenok and Lyudmyla Kichenok in the First Round at the Tokyo Olympics. Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina got off to a flying start as they bageled their opponents in 21 mins in the first set, in the second set they had the lead 5-2 and were ready to close the match. The twins fought back, making it to the tiebreak and winning it in almost an hour.In the final set they continued their fightback by winning 8 points on the trot and looked for a comfortable victory. Indians fought valiantly and made it 8-8 but couldn’t hold off the last two points as they lost the match in 1 and half hours.

4)      Indian shooters miss the target again in the 10m air rifle:-
In 10m Air Rifle Men’s Deepak Kumar and Divyansh Singh Panwar could not qualify for the finals. Deepak Kumar finished 26th with a score of 624.7 and Divyansh Singh Panwar 32nd with a score of 622.8 over a total of 6 series. India was expecting a podium finish in the event but couldn't do it this time, the shooting contingent were expected to get the majority of the medals but till now haven’t delivered. There are still medal probabilities in the remaining events in the coming days, especially the mixed team events considering the World Cup trophies the shooters have won.
 
5)      Indian mens boxing looking for 1st victory:-
In Men’s Boxing Manish Kaushik has lost to Luke McCormack of Britain 4-1 in the round of 32 in Men’s light (57-63kg) in Tokyo Olympics .This is his debut at the Olympics and he did come close in the three rounds. He will be looking forward to competing next time and do better than this year.

6)      Australia overwhelm India in hockey:-
The Kookaburras gained a huge victory over the Indian men’s team in the Pool A match at the Hockey Stadium North Pitch in Tokyo Olympics. In the first quarter saw the Australian side take the lead in the 10th minute when Daniel Beale netted the first goal from a penalty corner shot,in the second quarter saw the Australians scoring three goals. The first one as Jeremy Hayward scored from a penalty corner in the 21st minute,the second goal came in the 23rd minute by Flynn Ogilvie and the third goal of the quarter by Joshua Beltz in the 26th minute.
In the third quarter, Dilpreet Singh struck a goal in the 34th minute giving a slim hope but that     was soon crushed as  Govers Blake struck two penalty corner goals in the 40th and 42nd minute making the overall score 6-1. In the final quarter Brand Tim struck the 7th goal for his team and the 8th of the match in the 51st minute. India will face Spain in their third pool match on 27th.

7)   Maana and Nataraj come up short in heats:-
 Both of them made their debut here, Maana Patel came second in the Women's 100m backstroke Heat 1 with a timing of 1:05.20 but wasn't good enough to finish in the top 16 timings to clinch a spot in the semifinals. She finished 39th overall. 
Srihari Nataraj finished 5th in Men's 100m backstroke Heat 3 with a timing of 54.31s which wasn't enough to find a spot in the top 16 and finished 27th overall. He qualified through “A” standards to get into Tokyo, both of them are in their early twenties and have plenty of time to prepare to get on top of the podium.
 

(Tennis sport news) Olympic 2021 Live Update: Team India in Women’s doubles lost to the
Ukraninan team of Nadiia Kichenok and Lyudmyla Kichenok in the First Round at the Tokyo Olympics. Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina got off to a flying start as they bageled their opponents in 21 mins in the first set, in the second set they had the lead 5-2 and were ready to close the match. The twins fought back, making it to the tiebreak and winning it in almost an hour.

Also read: Manu Bhaker India’s medal hopeful does not qualify for the finals

In the final set they continued their fightback by winning 8 points on the trot and looked for a comfortable victory. The Indians fought valiantly and made it 8-8 but couldn’t hold off the last two points as they lost the match in 1 and half hours.

In Women’s singles Wimbledon Champion and world number 1 Ashleigh Barty was knocked out by Spaniard Sara Sorribes Tormo in two sets in the first Round of Tennis. Pulling off a major upset, Sara is definitely looking for more in the upcoming rounds.

Tokyo, Jul 23 (Tennis news) Indian tennis players need no less than a miraculous performance to get close to the medal rounds as an under-prepared team of Sania Mirza and debutant Ankita Raina faces a tough Ukrainian challenge in the opener while Sumit Nagal has got a tough draw in the singles competition starting Saturday. Mirza, who is making a record fourth Olympic appearance, and debutant Raina are going into the Olympics without playing a single competitive match together this year, which is far from ideal preparation for the biggest sporting event on earth.

The last time Mirza and Raina shared the court was in March 2020 during the Billie Jean King Cup.

They will open their campaign against Ukraine's twin sisters Nadiia and Lyudmyla Kichenok.

"Every match is going to be a challenge and we will take one match at a time. Because Of pandemic and quarantine rules we were playing different tournaments. So after Fed Cup we didn’t get a chance to play together," Raina told PTI.

However, Mirza has tons of experience and she is playing with a player who is known to punch above her weight while representing the nation.

Raina has a big heart for fight but it will all depend on the performance of Mirza, who has not been in the best of form with her serve being an issue.

During the recent Wimbledon championships, Mirza gradually upped her game from the baseline but her feeble serve was easily tackled by the rivals.

Interestingly, when Mirza returned to competitive tennis after the COVID-19 induced break in March this year, she and her Sloveinan partner Andreja Klepac had faced the same Ukrainian sister pair and had prevailed. Ranked as low as 137 post maternity break, 34-year-old Mirza has played only eight matches this season with a 4-4 win-loss record.

Also read: Deemed 'extreme risk' nation, India denied entry into ITF World Junior Finals

The 28-year-old Raina, ranked 100, has just one singles main draw victory to show since the beginning of the 2021 season.

In the doubles, she grabbed her first ever WTA title with partner Kamila Rakhimova at the Phillip Island Trophy in Melbourne in February and broke into doubles top-100 but suffered five straight first round defeats after that.

Had it not been for Mirza's Protected Ranking of nine, India would not have a women's doubles team at the Games.

In complete contrast, Nadiia, ranked 44, had played eight WTA Tour events with her sister Lyudmyla Kichenok, ranked 48, in 2020 and one this year.

Together they did not enjoy much success but Nadiia otherwise had decent results with Romania's Raluca Olaru in 2021.

They won the won St Petersburg (WTA 500) in March and reached the semifinals in Stuttgart (WTA 500) in April and ended runners-up in Bad Homburg last month.

If Mirza and Raina win their opener, they could face American eighth seeds Nicole Melichar (doubles world number 9) and Alison Riske (singles world number 36) in the next round.

In the men's singles, Nagal is extremely lucky to get an entry into the Olympics as with a rank of 144 on the cut-off date of June 14, he was far away from making the cut.

However, a spate of withdrawals pushed him inside.

Nagal's recent performances do not inspire confidence though at the start of the season he had pulled off the biggest victory of his career when he beat then world number 22 Cristian Garin.

However, after that he has managed only two quarterfinal appearances at the Challenger level, struggling badly on the Tour.

Nagal had hinted that he was struggling with some health issues and that was the reason for him not getting the desired results.

He faces Asian Games champion Denis Istomin in his first round. The Uzbekistan veteran had won the quota from the 2018 Jakarta Games by taking the men's singles title.

The grinder that Nagal is, there is a possibility of him getting past the 34-year-old Uzbek but the Indian may next face world number two and Australian Open runner-up Danill Medvedev from Russia and that could be end of the road for him.

News source: PTI 

Tokyo, Jul 23 (Olympics news) Indian paddlers A Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra have decided against attending the Olympics opening ceremony on Friday as they open their mixed doubles campaign the following day.

The names of both the players were there in the list of participants at the opening ceremony but as it turns out, it was an error on the part of the Indian officials who compiled the list.

The Asian Games bronze-medallist play the mighty Chinese Taipei pairing of Lin Yun-Ju and Cheng I-Ching in the round of 16 match on Saturday.

The pair from Chinese Taipei is seeded third and is currently number one in world rankings.

Instead of 20 athletes, 19 will be seen at the ceremony with tennis player Ankita Raina replacing the table tennis stars. Six officials will accompany them.

Boxing great M C Mary Kom and Indian hockey team skipper Manpreet Singh will be the flag-bearers at Japan National Stadium.

Also read: Tokyo gold winners to get Rs 75 lakh from IOA, move exposes internal rift

News source: PTI

Tokyo, Jul 22 (Tennis news) Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal will face Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin in the opening round of the men's singles event at the Tokyo Olympics, starting here on Friday.

Nagal, who qualified for the Games last week after large-scale withdrawals, was pitted against the lower-ranked Uzbek in the draw on Thursday.

A first-round win for the 23-year-old Indian, ranked 160, could see him face second-seeded Russia's Daniil Medvedev, who takes on Alexander Bublik in his opening round match.

In women's doubles, six-time Grand Slam champion Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina will lock horns with the Kichenok twins -- Nadiia and Lyudmyla -- of Ukraine in the opening round.

Interestingly, Mirza had paired up with Nadiia after returning from her maternity leave to win the Hobart Open last year.

Also read: AITA Secretary General Anil Dhupar rues Bopanna and Mirza comments on social media, calls it inappropriate and misleading

News source: PTI 

New Delhi, Jul 16 (Tennis news) Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal on Friday made the cut for the men's singles event of the Tokyo Olympics as large-scale withdrawals pushed him inside the qualification mark.

The All India Tennis Association (AITA) promptly paired him with Rohan Bopanna for the men's doubles competition by withdrawing Divij Sharan's nomination.

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) communicated to the AITA that Nagal was eligible for men's singles, hours before the deadline for entries expires.

Nagal was ranked 144 on June 14, when ATP rankings were to be considered for direct entries.

Till Thursday, the cut-off was in the range of 130 as Yuki Bhambri, with his protected ranking of 127, made the cut.

However, since he recently underwent a procedure on his right knee in the US, he has made himself unavailable and confirmed it to the PTI.

The stringent protocols under which the Games are being held and the fear of contracting the coronavirus has pushed many to withdraw, forcing the authorities to keep lowering the cut-off mark.

Prajnesh Gunneswaran was ranked 148 on June 14 and it remains to be seen if he also makes the cut by the time the deadline ends at 8:30pm IST.

"ITF has confirmed Nagal's entry for singles. We spoke to him and he accepted his entry. We have approached IOA and requested to arrange for his accreditation," Anil Dhupar, AITA's secretary general, told said.

Since the ITF is giving priority to singles players for filling up the men's doubles draw, AITA sniffed a chance to get a spot by fielding Nagal with Bopanna, who was earlier nominated with Divij Sharan.

Bopanna and Sharan, with a combined rank of 113, till Friday morning formed the fourth alternate team.

"We have withdrawn Divij Sharan's nomination and sent a new team to ITF. Let' see if Bopanna and Nagal can enter," Dhupar added.

It is imperative that Bopanna makes the cut for the men's doubles because it is highly unlikely that Nagal and Sania Mirza would make it to the mixed doubles event, which is a 16-team affair.

Also read: Tennis player Nagal now eligible for Tokyo singles draw, Yuki misses out due to injury

The ITF, as of now, has not confirmed if Bopanna and Nagal can enter the men's doubles.

"We are not in a position to speculate on doubles scenarios. Gunneswaran is still a few places below the cut-off," an ITF official told PTI.

As of now only Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina are certain to compete in the women's doubles draw. Sania used her protected rank of nine to enter with Ankita.

All top-10 players get direct entry and have the privilege to choose a partner of their choice, who is ranked inside top-300.

News source: PTI

New Delhi, Jul 16 (Tennis news) Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal is now eligible to compete in the men's singles event at the Tokyo Olympics, the world governing body ITF has communicated to the AITA, a source in the national tennis body said on Friday.

Nagal was ranked 144 on June 14, when ATP rankings were to be considered for direct entries.

Another specialist singles player Prajnesh Gunneswaran was ranked 148 and it remains to be seen if he also makes the cut as the deadline for accepting tennis entries is closing in a few hours from now.

The stringent protocols under which the Games are being held and the fear of contracting coronavirus has forced many withdrawals that kept lowering the cut-off mark.

"We have received a mail from the ITF that Sumit is now eligible. They have asked for his details. We have started the process of getting him in," an AITA official told PTI.

Yuki Bhambri, with his Protected Ranking of 127, also made the cut but since he recently underwent a procedure on his right knee in the US, he has made himself unavailable.

Also read: Touching 40s, India's Table Tennis great Sharath Kamal hits peak ahead of Tokyo Olympics

"I won't be playing," Bhambri told PTI in a terse message.

If Nagal can make it to Tokyo by completing all the required formalities, it remains to be seen if he makes the doubles draw with Rohan Bopanna, who could not enter with Divij Sharan till now.

Bopanna and Sharan's combined rank is 113 and they were still fifth alternate recently.

ITF is giving priority to the singles players to fill the doubles draw.

Nagal's entry would also mean that India can now have a team in the mixed doubles draw as well.

As of now only Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina are certain to compete in the women's doubles draw. Sania used her protected rank of nine to enter with Ankita.

All top-10 players get direct entry and have the privilege to choose a partner of their choice, who is ranked inside top-300.

News source: PTI

It is always a proud moment to represent the whole nation and compete against the top players in the world. Victory anthem in the podium and the millions of eyes watching these moments, it is indeed an event which is every athlete’s dream finish. The women’s Olympic tennis witnessed history upon its continuance in 1988 when Steffi Graff won the only ever Golden Slam. After that, it has seen the Russians taking home the top three medals in singles at the Beijing Olympics 2008. There have been a lot of records and milestones in the Olympics for women in tennis. There have been different winners on top with the most consistent being the Williams sisters.

The women's singles draw looks promising as most of the top players in the field are competing in this year’s Olympics which is being held at Tokyo. Serena Williams would not be competing this time because of her injury, as for her sister Venus Williams who has been competing since 1996 and has won five medals most likely won't compete this year. Monica Puig the defending champion will also not be competing as she has undergone shoulder surgery, she earlier became the first Puerto Rican to win a gold medal at the Olympics. US Open winner and teen sensation Bianca Andreescu will also not be competing this time due to Covid concerns.

Newly crowned Wimbledon champion Ashleigh Barty, who is also the world number 1 will be tough to deal with and world number 2 Naomi Osaka will be the favourite to win the gold medal as it also played in hardcourt, that too in her own backyard. Iga Świątek the 2020 French Open Champion will make her debut this time and she can pull a major upset in Tokyo. Heather Watson will be playing Singles and Doubles this time, she won the 2016 Wimbledon mixed doubles and will hope to do one better this time. In tennis news, the USA team will be led by one of the youngest Olympic tennis players, 17 year old Coco Gauff, who made the Quarterfinals of this year’s French Open and defeated Venus William in the Wimbledon in 2019. In the Indian team Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina will be competing in the women’s doubles, as India for the first time since 1988 won't feature a Men's doubles team. In the Rio Olympics, Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna came real close to winning a medal in the mixed doubles.

Aryna Sabalenka, Elina Svitolina, Karolina Pliskova, and Garbine Muguruza are all set to compete. Pliskova will be looking to avenge her Wimbledon final loss to Ashleigh Barty.Garbine  Muguruza, the former world number 1 and two time Grand Slam champion can use her powerful flat groundstrokes which can come in handy to tackle the opponent in hard courts and with her experience can take on the new recruits. Osaka can become the first Women’s tennis player from Japan to win a medal in the Olympics as Kei Nishikori is the only other one. There won't be any spectators for the first time and it would be interesting to see how the players battle it out.

Interesting Fact: Venus Williams is  the first tennis player to win a medal at four Olympic games. (2000, 2008, 2012, 2016)

London, Jul 7 (Tennis news) Rohan Bopanna stayed solid with his service games and net play but Sania Mirza's serve was consistently put under pressure as the Indian team was ousted from the Wimbledon Championships following a three-set defeat in the stop-start mixed doubles third round, here on Wednesday. The contest resumed with the 14th seed pair of Jean Julien-Roger and Andreja Klepac having a one-set lead and they finished on the right side of the result with a 6-3 3-6 11-9 scoreline.

Mirza has not played much competitive tennis post her comeback and is struggling to get her serve right.

Serving to stay in the match at 5-6 in the decider, Mirza managed to hold after a few anxious moments.

It was largely Bopanna's reflexes at the net and a solid game from the baseline apart from a superb lob from Mirza that helped the Indians pull off the game after two deuce.

Mirza again served in a similar situation at 9-10. Roger hit a crushing forehand winner at 15-15 and then Bopanna's volley sailed over the baseline.

The Dutch player, on the second match point, then executed a stunning service winner, that whizzed past from Bopanna's right side.

It was Mirza's last tournament before the Tokyo Games where she will compete in the women's doubles with Ankita Raina.

With this defeat India's challenge has ended at the grass court Grand Slam.

Also read: Former tennis players Paes-Bhupathi set to reunite for a web series

News source: PTI

London, Jul 2 (Sports news) The experienced pair of Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza defeated the brand new combination of Ramkaumar Ramanathan and Ankita Raina 6-2 7-6 (5) in the historic all-Indian mixed doubles first round match at the Wimbledon here on Friday.

It was the first time in open era that two Indian teams competed against each other at a Grand Slam tournament.

The contest finally brought a Grand Slam debut for Ramkumar, who has made 21 attempts to qualify for the singles main draw of a tennis major.

While the first set ended quickly in favour of the veterans, Ramkumar and Raina presented a good fight in the second set, which even they led for a brief period with a break of serve.

Also read: India at Wimbledon: Ankita Raina and partner bow out in first round of women's doubles

Bopanna was clearly the best player on the court with his powerful serve and solid ground strokes from the baseline as well as the ability to execute a superior net game.

On expected lines, Ramkumar served big while Raina gave her all after growing in confidence.

Mirza's serve is still not at its best and would improve as she plays more matches.

Mirza has moved has also moved to women's doubles second round with Bethanie Mattek-Sands while Raina and her American partner Lauren Davis lost in straight sets to the US pair of Asia Muhammad and Jessica Pegula on Thursday night.

The 14th seeds disposed off the challenge from the Raina-Davis pair 6-3 6-2 in 70 minutes.

Bopanna and Divij Sharan are already out, having lost their men's doubles opening round match.

News sourece: PTI 

London, Jul 2 (Sports news) Ankita Raina's maiden appearance in Wimbledon's main draw ended in disappointment as the Indian and her American partner Lauren Davis lost in straight sets to the US pair of Asia Muhammad and Jessica Pegula.

The 14th seeds disposed off the challenge from the Raina-Davis pair beating them 6-3 6-2 in 70 minutes during a late evening match on Court No 11.

Ankita, however, will be pairing with compatriot Ramkumar Ramanathan in the mixed doubles event where they would meet their country's seasoned pair of Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna.

Also read: Rohan Bopanna, Divij Sharan miss cut for tennis men's doubles event at Tokyo Games

Sania and her American partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands are through to the second round of women's doubles while Bopanna and Divij Sharan are already out, having lost their men's doubles opening round encounter.

News source: PTI

New Delhi, Jun 30 (Tennis news) In a setback to India's medal chances in the tennis event of Tokyo Olympics, Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan have missed the cut for men's doubles, which also rules out the country's presence in the mixed team competition, its best chance for a podium finish.

It was expected that with a low combined ranking of 113, Bopanna (38) and left-handed Sharan's (75) entry would depend only on large scale withdrawals.

"The ITF has confirmed that Bopanna and Divij could not be entered as a team in the men's doubles team. However, things might change till July 16 (if there are more withdrawals)," an AITA source told PTI.

When All India Tennis Association (AITA) Secretary General Anil Dhupar was contacted, he said he will be able to give a clear picture only when he has the complete entry list in his hands.

Despite some withdrawals, the cut for 22 teams out of 24 direct acceptances was as high as in mid-60s, according to sources but the final cut-off could not be confirmed.

Even if there are more withdrawals, it will be extremely difficult for India to have a team in men's doubles.

The priority would first be given to singles ranked players, then the singles-doubles combination and then the doubles-doubles ranking combination.

Since many top players are not part of the singles draw, the lower-ranked players, who consistently compete in doubles also, would not miss the chance to play two events at the Olympics.

Each player is allowed to be in two events.

As per rules, only those players can be a part of the mixed team event who are already in one of the main draws (either singles our doubles).

In India's case, it was imperative for Bopanna to be in men's doubles so that he can be paired with Sania Mirza, who is set to compete in her fourth Olympics with Ankita Raina in the women's doubles event.

Sania and Rohan came close to winning a bronze in 2016 but they lost the bronze play-off to Czech Republic's Radek Stepanek and Lucie Hradecka in straight sets.

The limited number of opportunities in terms of tournaments due to the COVID-19 lockdown and travel restrictions made it tough for both Bopanna and Sharan to improve their rankings.

Bopanna was ranked 38th at the start of the year while Sharan's ranking only got worse after starting at number 63.

India have never missed out on fielding a men's doubles team at the Olympics ever since a young Leander Paes and Ramesh Krishnan competed at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.

In editions after that, Paes was there mostly with Mahesh Bhupathi. In 2016 Paes and Bopanna competed and lost in the first round. News source: PTI

In Sports news, New Delhi, Jun 29 Asian Games bronze medallists Ankita Raina and Prajnesh Gunneswaran have been nominated for the prestigious Arjuna award by the national tennis federation, which has also sent names of Balram Singh and Enrico Piperno for the Dhyanchand honour.

Ankita and Prajnesh both won singles bronze medals at the 2018 Asian Games held in Jakarta and Palembang.

Ankita is now country's best-ranked singles (182) and doubles (95) player and is set to make his Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games next month.

"This year we have nominated Ankita and Prajnesh for Arjuna while the names of very respected Balram sir and Enrico Piperno have been sent for life time achievement honour, Dhyanchand," an All Indian Tennis Association (AITA) official told PTI.

The 28-year-old Ankita has been India's key player in the Billie Jean King Cup team for the last three years.

She was nominated for the 'Arjuna' last year also but Asian Games gold medallist Divij Sharan succeeded in bagging the award.

Prajnesh is one of the most mature players in the current Indian generation. Had he not lost five crucial years to knee stress fractures, his career would have been an altogether different story.

The 31-year-old left-hander from Chennai, ranked 148 on the ATP charts, has played five Davis Cup ties for the country.

In the Lifetime achievement category, Balram Singh, who has a 50 year-long association with the Indian tennis, will vie for the honour along with Piperno, who coached the Davis Cup team between 1991-2001 for 27 consecutive ties.

The 73-year-old Balram, one of those extremely shy and non-controversial figures in Indian tennis, coached the Davis Cup teams in 1989 (South Korea) and 1990 (Japan).

He himself reached the junior Wimbledon and junior US Open quarterfinals in 1966.

That he has always preferred to stay away from the limelight and work in the background is evident from the fact that he has applied for an award for the first time.

He also established Balram Singh Trust to support talented junior players. Balram is a member of the senior selection committee and also headed it in the past.

His children -- Ashutosh Singh and Shalini Thakur -- have also played tennis at a good level. While Ashutosh won the Fenesta Nationals and was also a reserve player in the Davis Cup side, Shalini has played the Fed Cup.

The 59-year-old Piperno also has an impressive CV as he himself is an 1982 Asian Games silver medallist was coach of India's first Grand Slam winner Mahesh Bhupathi from 1997 to 2003 and also travelled for with legendary Leander Paes.

He was also coach of Indian Fed Cup team between 2000 and 2012 and the national women team at the Asian Games in in Busan (2002), Doha (2006) and Guangzhou (2010).

Last year former Davis Cup coach Nandan bal had won the Dhyanchand award. News Source: PTI

New Delhi, Jun 26 The national tennis federation has requested the ITF to consider Ankita Raina's bronze-medal winning performance at the 2018 Asian Games for a place in the women's singles draw of the Tokyo Olympics since the gold and silver medallists from China are eligible for a direct entry due to their higher ranks.

Ankita had won a bronze at the 2018 Asian Games, where the winner was assured of a Continental qualification place in the women's singles draw at the Tokyo Olympics.

Wang Qiang had won the gold while her Chinese compatriot Zhang Shuai took silver at the Games held in Jakarta and Palembang.

As per the June 14 WTA rankings, both Zhang (world number 36) Shuai (world number 38) are eligible for direct entry.

The ITF rules for the eligibility criteria state that athletes who achieve both a Continental Games qualification place and subsequently a Direct Acceptance ranking, will qualify using the Continental Qualification quota place.

As per the ITF rules, if the winner does not accept the quota or becomes ineligible for it, the Continental place can be given to the silver medallist and so on.

However, the All India Tennis Association (AITA) has written to the International Tennis Federation (ITF) that Ankita be considered for an entry so that the country can have representation at the Games in the singles event. "We wrote to them about Ankita's entry through the Continental route and they said they will let us know," a senior AITA official told PTI.

"It makes sense that the Continental place is given to the next best performer if gold and silver medal winners can make it to the draw basis their higher rank." Ankita was ranked 181 on June 14 when the rankings were considered for direct entries.

With such a low rank even mass withdrawal won't help in the draw of 64.

Ankita, though, will make her Olympic debut in Tokyo in the women's doubles after being picked as partner by Sania Mirza, who was assured of direct entry due to her top-10 rank.

Sania has used her protected ranking (9) to enter the Olympics.

Meanwhile, reliable sources have said India will not be able to have representation in the men's singles since the cut fell at 105 and India's best players -- Sumit Nagal (144) and Prajnesh Gunneswaran (148) are not even close to the mark.

It remains to be seen if Rohan Bopanna (38) and Divij Sharan (75) will get entry in the men's doubles. Their combined rank of 113 as of June 14 means that their qualification would depend on withdrawal of teams from other nations.

Bopanna and Sharan had won the gold at the Asian Games but the quota was kept only for the singles winners.

If India won't be able to field a team in the men's doubles, then the country will also go unrepresented in the mixed doubles event since the 16-team competition will have players only from main draws of other events. News source PTI

London, Jun 23 Indian tennis player Ankita Raina's attempt to qualify for the women's singles main draw of Wimbledon failed after she went down in the first round of the Qualifiers here.

The 28-year-old Indian, lost 3-6 6-7 to a higher-ranked American Varvara Lepchenko in one hour 22 minutes late Tuesday night.

Unable to hold her serve in the opening set, the Indian came back strong in the second before being completely outplayed (1-7) in the tiebreak.

Ankita, ranked 182, had only one break point in the match, which she failed to convert.

In the men's qualifiers, India's Ramkumar Ramanathan advanced to the second round but Prajnesh Gunneswaran was ousted on Tuesday. News source: PTI 

London, Jun 22 In a forgettable outing, India's Prajnesh Gunneswaran bowed out of Wimbledon Qualifiers on Tuesday after losing in straight sets to British wild card Arthur Fery, who is not ranked even inside top-1000.

The left-handed Indian, ranked 148, lost 1-6 6-7(5) to his 18-year-old rival, who is ranked as low as 1038.

Prjanesh made a comeback after the first-set drubbing but the Briton did not allow the Indian to stretch the contest to a third set.

Ramkumar Ramanathan and Ankita Raina are also in action on Tuesday. News source: PTI 

New Delhi, Jun 14 India will have to wait to know if a men's doubles team from the country will compete at the Tokyo Olympics since Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan's qualification, who have a low combined ranking of 113, would depend on number of entries from other nations.

The top-10 players have the privilege to select a partner of their choice as per the ITF rules but Bopanna is ranked 38 and left-handed Sharan is placed as low as 75 after the fresh rankings were issued on Monday following the conclusion of the French Open.

Bopanna's quarterfinal appearance helped him gain two places while Sharan's first round exit resulted in him losing one place. A total of 32 teams each will feature in the men's and women's doubles draw.

Both Bopanna and Sharan are unsure of their participation.

"Completely alien as it all depends which players and teams are going . Impossible to calculate like other events," Bopanna told PTI when asked about their chances.

According to International Tennis Federation (ITF) qualification system, rankings of June 14 will be considered for entries and each nation is limited to a maximum of six men and six women, with a maximum of four singles players and two doubles teams for both genders.

The ITF will announce on July 5 which players have made it to the draws and Bopanna and Sharan will get an idea by the end of June to know their fate.

If the ITF receives fewer entries due to the concerns around pandemic, Bopanna and Sharan's chances will improve.

As of now, only Sania Mirza is assured of a place in the women's doubles as she will use her protected ranking to enter the Games, She was ranked nine before she took maternity leave and has decided to compete with Ankita Raina.

There is a possibility that Ankita may enter the women's singles draw, getting one of the six Continental places.

The two finalists at the Asian Games were to be give Tokyo Olympics places but since China's singles champion Wang Qiang (38) and runner-up Zhang Shuai (36) may get direct entry courtesy their high ranks, bronze medallist Ankita could be given the Continental place. For 16-team mixed doubles event, on-site entries will be accepted on July 27.

The tennis event will start on July 24 and will culminate on August 1. News source PTI 

Paris, Jun 7 India's campaign in the French Open came to an end as Rohan Bopanna and his Croatian partner Franko Skugor lost their men's doubles quarterfinal here on Monday.

The 41-year-old Bopanna and Skugos went down 5-7 3-6 to the Spanish duo of Pablo Andujar and Pedro Martinez in a match that lasted one hour and 17 minutes.

The unseeded Indo-Croat pairing had received a walkover in the pre-quarters on Sunday against Netherlands' Matwe Middelkoop and Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador.

Last week, Divij Sharan and Ankita Raina had lost their opening round matches of men's and women's doubles events respectively In the singles events, Sumit Nagal, Ramkumar Ramanathan, Prajnesh Guneswaran and Ankita had failed to enter the main draw. New source PTI 

Paris, Jun 3 Veteran Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna and his Croatian partner Franko Skugor advanced to the pre-quarterfinals of the French Open with a straight set win over Americans Frances Tiafo and Nicholas Monroe here on Thursday.

The unseeded Bopanna and Skugor prevailed over their rivals 6-4 7-5 in the second round match that lasted one hour and 20 minutes.

The 41-year-old Bopanna, ranked 40 in the world, is not defending any points this year at the Roland Garros.

He needs to earn points since the this is his last chance to improve his ranking. The rankings on June 10 will be considered for entry into the Tokyo Olympics.

Divij Sharan, though, lost his chance by losing his first round match.

The combined rankings of Bopanna and Sharan will be taken into account for entries. A low ranking will scuttle their chances.

As of now only Sania Mirza is assured of a place in the women's doubles draw. She will most likely pair with Ankita Raina. New source PTI 

Paris, May 27 India's top player Sumit Nagal could not make a hat-trick of Grand Slam main draw appearances following a straight-set defeat in the second round of the French Open Qualifying event here.

The Haryana youngster crashed out of the Clay Court major with a 3-6 3-6 loss to Alejandro Tabilo from Chile, last night.

In the engrossing contest that lasted one-and-a-half-hours, Nagal could break the serve of his rival, ranked 23 places below him at 146, only twice while he himself dropped his serve five times.

With the defeat of the 23-year-old from Jhajjar, India's challenge has ended in the Qualifiers.

Ramkumar Ramanathan, Prajnesh Guneswaran and Ankita Raina have already exited from the tournament.

Now India will be represented through Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan in the men's doubles main draw.

It is crucial for both of them to earn ranking points by going deep in the draw since the official rankings of June 10 will decide which players make the cut for the Tokyo Olympics.

Sania Mirza has decided not to compete in this tournament as she wanted to use her 'special ranking' to enter the Wimbledon Championships. New source PTI

Paris, May 26 Ankita Raina's yet another attempt to qualify for the singles main draw of a Grand Slam failed as she bowed out of the French Open Qualifiers with a second-round defeat, here on Wednesday.

Ankita, up against higher-ranked German Greet Minnen, could win only two games in the entire match that lasted one hour and 21 minutes.

The 125th ranked Indian could convert only one of the three break points and eventually lost 2-6 0-6.

It was Ankita's seventh attempt to crack the singles main draw of a major. She had reached the final round of the Australian Open qualifying event early this year, falling at the final stage.

Ramkumar Ramanathan also crashed out with a tame 1-6 2-6 defeat against Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin.

Sumit Nagal is now the only Indian left in fray for a main draw berth. He will take on Alejandro Tabilo in his second round. New source PTI

Paris, May 26 Ankita Raina's yet another attempt to qualify for the singles main draw of a Grand Slam failed as she bowed out of the French Open Qualifiers with a second-round defeat, here on Wednesday.

Ankita, up against higher-ranked German Greet Minnen, could win only two games in the entire match that lasted one hour and 21 minutes.

The 125th ranked Indian could convert only one of the three break points and eventually lost 2-6 0-6.

It was Ankita's seventh attempt to crack the singles main draw of a major. She had reached the final round of the Australian Open qualifying event early this year, falling at the final stage.

Later Wednesday, Ramkumar Ramanathan and Sumit Nagal will take court for their respective men's singles second round matches. New source PTI 

Jurmala (Latvia), Apr 15 The Indian players have an onerous task at hand to compete against higher-ranked Latvians, including 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, when they strive to clear the World Group Play-offs hurdle at the Billie Jean King Cup, here from Friday. By her own admission, Ankita Raina plays her best tennis at this event, formerly known as Fed Cup, and India would again expect her to punch above her weight when she takes on Ostapenko in the tie-opening match of the Play-offs where India are competing for the first time. Though odds are against them, what may go in favour of the Indians is that the tie will be played on indoor hard court as the Latvians surprisingly did not choose clay courts, more suited to their players, and the absence of crowd support for the hosts. Ankita (ranked 174) and Karman Kaur Thandi (ranked 621), who takes on host number one player Anastasija Sevastova (ranked 47), both said they are ready for a good fight. Ankita played against Sevastova way back in 2015 at home in Ahmedabad, losing an ITF final to her. Their journeys have been contrasting since then with Sevastova getting into top-50 with a crushing backhand. She even beat Serena Williams when Latvia played against US in 2020 Fed Cup Qualifiers. "We mostly play on hard courts, so I am ready and excited for it. I give my best when I represent my country, I am more than ready," Ankita said at a virtual press conference. Karman, who is making a comeback after an injury lay-off, said she is physically prepared for the big challenge. "Fast or slow, it does not matter, both Ankita and I prefer hard courts. It's a good opportunity for us," she said. Asked why he chose Karman over higher-ranked Rutuja Bhosale (419), captain Vishal Uppal said he has gone by his "gut feeling". "All my five players have worked hard. I felt Karman can give us some extra on day one. I have gone with my gut," he said. Sevastova said she knows Ankita well but watched a few Youtube videos of Karman to get an idea about her game. "I watched for fun," she said jokingly. "I watched to know what are her weapons or weakness. It's one thing to watch a video and different in real life. You know more when you are on court." She played on clay court recently but said switching to hard court won't be an issue. She admitted that the surface would suit the Indians more. Uppal felt the absence of crowd will work in India's favour. "We have got to this stage (Play-offs) for the first time. The good thing is, there won't be 5-7 thousand fans screaming at us but at the same time it takes the fun away. Ranking go out of window in Bille Jean King Cup." The Schedule: Friday: 1) Ankita Raina vs Jelena Ostapenko.2) Karman Kaur Thandi vs Anastasija Sevastova. Saturday: 3) Ankita Raina vs Anastasija Sevastova.4) Karman Thandi vs Jelena Ostapenko.5) Sania Mirza/Ankita Raina vs Diana Marcinkevica/Daniela Vismane. Matches to start at 3:30pm on Friday and 11:30 am on Saturday. Matches to be telecast live on Eurosport. News source: PTI

New Delhi, Apr 9 (PTI) Indian players would not care for the reputation of higher-ranked Latvians and play fearless brand of tennis, captain Vishal Uppal said on Friday, confident that they can topple their formidable opponents in their upcoming Billi Jean King Cup tie. The Indian women players travel to Latvia for the World Group Play-offs tie, to be played on the indoor courts of National Tennis Centre Lielupe in Jurmala from April 16. The hosts are fielding their top players including world number 47 Anstasija Sevastova, 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko (ranked 53), Diana Marcinkevica (ranked 274) and Daniela Vismane (492). The Latvian team, to be captained by Adrians Zguns, also has inexperienced Patricija Spaka. "We are not only excited, we are hungry to do well. We can only gain, we have nothing to lose from this tie," Uppal said at a press conference on the eve of team's departure. "They have players inside top-50, so pressure will be on them to beat us. We are not playing reputation but players, we will play hard." The Indian team will reach Latvia on Saturday and spend 24 hours in quarantine before hitting the courts from Monday. Asked about the approach the team will adopt, considering their superior rivals, Uppal oozed confidence. "That's why upsets happen. We want to make an impression. It's a huge moment for Indian women's tennis. We have never reached the Play-off stage before, we are all pumped up." The Indian team will be led by Ankita Raina, the country's best singles player ranked 165. The other members are seasoned Sania Mirza, Karman Kaur Thandi (637), who has a big game and is making a come back from an injury, Rutuja Bhosale (420) and debutant Zeel Desai (568). "I am spoilt for choices. I can nominate anyone. It would depend on whose game is best suited for the conditions," said Uppal. The tie will be played indoors. Rutuja said she plays her best tennis competing in Billie Jean King Cup, previously known as Fed Cup. "It's a dream of every player to play for country with that national flag on the jersey. I am looking forward to the tie. I like playing indoors, I just have to see if it is slow indoor courts, or fast," she said. Coach Radhika Tulpule said the players have worked hard for the tie and will present a good fight.

Melbourne, Feb 13 (PTI) Veteran Rohan Bopanna crashed out of the mixed doubles event with a straight-set loss in the opening round to draw curtains on India's campaign at this year's Australian Open here on Saturday. Bopanna and his Chinese partner Yingying Duan lost 4-6 4-6 to the pair of American Bethanie Mattek-Sands and United Kingdom's Jamie Murray in a first round match that lasted an hour and three minutes. Bopanna and Japan's Ben McLachlan had earlier bowed out of the men's doubles event after a 4-6 6-7 (0) defeat to the Korean wild card pair of Ji Sung Nam and Min-Kyu Song in an opening round match. Divij Sharan and Ankita Raina had already crashed out of the men's and women's doubles events after suffering straight-set defeats in the opening round on Thursday. Ankita, the fifth Indian woman tennis player ever to secure a place in the main draw of a Grand Slam event, and her partner Mihaela Buzarnecu of Romania lost 3-6 0-6 at the hands of Australian wild cards Olivia Gadecki and Belinda Woolcock. Divij and his Slovakian teammate Igor Zelenay lost 1-6 4-6 to the German combination of Yannick Hanfmann Kevin Krawietz in the first round

Melbourne, Feb 11 (PTI) India's Divij Sharan and Ankita Raina crashed out of the Australian Open men's and women's doubles events respectively, after suffering straight set defeats in the opening round here on Thursday. Ankita, the third Indian woman tennis player to secure a place in the main draw of a Grand Slam event, and her partner Mihaela Buzarnecu of Romania lost 3-6 0-6 in just one hour and 17 minutes at the hands of Australian wild card pair of Olivia Gadecki and Belinda Woolcock. India's challenge also ended in the men's doubles competition after Divij and his Slovakian partner Igor Zelenay lost 1-6 4-6 against the German combination of Yannick Hanfmann Kevin Krawietz in the first round match that lasted one hour and four minutes. On Wednesday, the other Indian in men's doubles event, Rohan Bopanna and Japan's Ben McLachlan bowed out in the opening round after a 4-6 6-7(0) defeat to the Korean wild card pair of Ji Sung Nam and Min-Kyu Song. The veteran Bopanna, however, still has a chance to make amends as he will partner China's Yingying Duan in the mixed doubles and will be up against the pair of American Bethanie Mattek-Sands and United Kingdom's Jamie Murray in the first round.

Melbourne, Jan 30 (PTI) Indian tennis star Rohan Bopanna's search to look for a partner for the men's doubles competition at the Australian Open ended on Saturday as he tied up with Japan's Ben McLachlan for the season's first Grand Slam. Bopanna had originally paired with Joao Sousa but the Portuguese contracted coronavirus virus, forcing them to pull out. Bopanna, who served a 14-day hard quarantine after arriving in Melbourne on January 16, informed that Ben and he were in the same boat. "I got lucky there. Unfortunately Ben's partner Raven Klassen had to pull out and Ben was looking for a partner, so we finally decided to commit and sign up together. I am looking forward to see how it goes. Definitely was not easy to find partners, happy to have found one," Bopanna told PTI. Australian Open will begin on February 8 under strict COVID-19 protocols. Apart from Bopanna, India will have Divij Sharan in the men's doubles event while Sumit Nagal will compete in the men's singles on a wild card. Ankita Raina is waiting to find out if she gets 'lucky loser' spot in the women's singles.

New Delhi, Jan 27 (PTI) The hotel room wall is helping him get some practice and an online course keeping boredom at bay. Rohan Bopanna's build-up to the season-opening Australian Open has been far from ideal so far as he waits for his day of freedom -- January 30. The 40-year-old was on one of the three flights out of a total of 17 Tennis Australia-arranged chartered planes, that landed in Melbourne with positive cases on board. He is in his 10th straight day of hard 'quarantine' ever since -- confined to his room. However, the veteran, who left Bangalore on January 15 and had a 25-hour layover in Doha before reaching Melbourne, would not call it an ordeal just yet. "If you test positive, you would be in hard quarantine but what we did not know that if someone on your flight tests positive then everyone also had to be in hard quarantine. That's what happened," Bopanna told PTI from Melbourne. "My coach Scott Davidoff was also in one of those three flights and they also told him that he can't leave for 14 days and follow hard quarantine." Bopanna has empathy for the organisers, who, he says, are facing a huge challenge in ensuring a smooth run for the competition but can't hide his own frustration either. "We still are not allowed in any circumstances. Practice is out (of question). Maximum I have done is against the wall in this small room. Whatever fitness I can do in this room. Luckily Tennis Australia helped with Uber Eats (app) that delivers nice food," he said. "They have done their very best to help the players. Craig Tiley (Tournament Director) is extremely hard working. Everyday they have zoom calls, speaking to the players who are in hard quarantine. It's been extremely difficult (for players)," he explained. It's not the same for other Indians though. Ankita Raina, Sumit Nagal and Divij Sharan are getting five hours outside their rooms for on-court practice, gym sessions, eating and travelling to courts. Bopanna said he was not prepared for such the situation he is in. What is worse is that his partner for the Australian Open -- Portugal's Joao Sousa -- tested positive for coronavirus, forcing him to pull out. The Indian is now looking for a partner from among the players who are already in Melbourne. "Ideally, to get into a Grand Slam, it's not the situation you want to be in. I had a good off-season and a training camp at the academy. (N Sriram) Balaji and Riya (Bhatia) had come down from Delhi. Former national champion Niki Poonacha, was also there. "That was unfortunate that you are getting prepared and now you are not able to step out of your room for 14 days. I get out on 30th and 31st is when the first ATP event of the season starts. "I don't know how I will be in that situation, I have never been in this situation before, where I have not practised and gotten straight into a tournament. It will be new experience. "I am looking for a partner who I can get in with as an alternate. I need to find someone high enough to play with me. I am sure I will get but going into a Grand Slam, it's not the best preparation." The rules specified that players could only choose between coach and physio for travel to Melbourne and Bopanna thought having coach would be better. "Looking back I would have loved to have physio with me. That's where I am at now." So, what else he is doing apart from hitting against the wall. "I am doing some online courses, keeping myself busy." Bopanna had completed a course in International Entertainment and Sports Marketing from Yonsei University before enrolling himself to a new one. "I am doing a lot of video calls back home with my wife, daughter, friends, I am talking to them. A few players have also been talking to me, asking how I am doing." "Interesting past 8-9 days. 30th is the day, I get my freedom."

Melbourne, Jan 13 (PTI) Ankita Raina's bid to qualify for a Grand Slam singles main draw failed yet again when she lost the final round of the Australian Open qualifying event to Serbian Olga Danilovic on Wednesday. In the women's singles qualifiers being held in Dubai, Ankita lost the third and final round 2-6 6-3 1-6 to her Serbian opponent in almost two hours. Not being able to win points on her first serve hurt Ankita. It was the Indian's sixth attempt to qualify for a competition at the grand stage. Her defeat means that Sumit Nagal will be the only Indian to compete in the singles event of the first Grand Slam of the season. Nagal has been awarded a wild card entry into the men's singles. Ramkumar Ramanathan had lost in the first round of the men's singles event while Prajnesh Gunneswaran lost his second round to French player Constant Lestienne 2-6 3-6.

Melbourne, Jan 12 (PTI) India's top-ranked woman player Ankita Raina moved to the final round of the Australian Open Qualifiers with a gutsy three-set win over world number 118 Katarina Zavatska but it was curtains for Ramkumar Ramanathan in the men's singles. In the women's singles qualifiers being held in Dubai, the 180th ranked Ankita overcame a second-set lapse to win 6-2 2-6 6-3 in the second round against the Ukrainian. Ankita said she was proud of the fight in the match that lasted two hours and 20 minutes. "I started well in the first set and the first two games of second set. Then the third game was kind of crucial because she won that game and got confident and played more balls back but I'm glad I could shift the momentum back," Ankita told PTI. "I started being more aggressive and sticking to my game. Struggled a bit with the the serve in the beginning but later was bit better. Was little windy in the later half of the match but I'm proud the way I fought." Ankita will next take on 20-year-old Serbian Olga Danilovic, ranked 183. It will be the first meeting between the two players. "I am feeling confident with the game, I just need to play smart as every match and every day is new and different, so taking it match by match," she said. It is Ankita's sixth attempt to crack the singles main draw of a Grand Slam and she is now just one win away from creating history. Only Nirupama Vaidyanathan and Sania Mirza have competed in the women's singles main draw of a Grand Slam from India till date. Nirupama had reached the second round of the Australian Open in 1998 while Sania quit competing in the singles category in 2012. In the men's singles being held in Doha, Ramkumar lost his second round 3-6 2-6 to Chinese Taipei's Tung-Lin Wu in 69 minutes.