New Delhi, Oct 29 (Tennis news) Qualifier Sharmada Balu knocked out second seed Vaidehi Chaudhari to set up the women's singles title clash against Zeel Desai, while Nikki Poonacha earned a shot at his second men's singles title at the Fenesta Open National tennis championship, here on Friday.

Sharmada got past Vaidehi 6-4 6-3 in the semifinals, while top seed Zeel did not face much challenge from Samhitha Sai Chamarthi and won her last-four match 6-2 6-2.

"I played really good today. My opponent was no pushover but my game was in place. I am happy to pull off this win and give it my best shot in the final on Saturday," said Sharmada.

Zeel said she had to plan well for her semifinal.

"Today I was playing a senior opponent so I had to play a much more mature game. She was more experienced than me, so I played mature and I was patient on the court. I went through it and am looking forward to the final," said Zeel.

In the men's singles, the 2019 champion Poonacha edged out Paras Dahiya 6-1 5-7 7-5 to set up the final against Digvijay Pratap Singh, who outslugged third seed Nitin Kumar Sinha 6-1 5-7 7-5.

"It was again a long grind today like yesterday’s match. I won the first set easy but then I struggled to finish it in the second. But just like before, I managed to keep my calm and finally managed to get the win," said Digvijay.

Also Read : Zeel, Vaidehi reach women's singles semifinals at tennis Nationals

News Source : PTI