Boys book berth in finals

The Indians, seeded No 2, comprised Sanam K Singh, Rupesh Roy and Sumit Prakash Gupta; the coach was Mumbai’s Mayur Vasant. They had to play just two matches, against Pakistan (3-0) and Uzbekistan (2-0), then beat hong Kong in the quarters before losing to Korea in the semis.

The Uzbekistan match, Vasant told The Indian Express, was the ‘most decisive moment’. ‘‘Any mishap there meant we would have ended up playing Indonesia in the quarter-finals. But luckily we won quite easily.’’

The win over the Uzbeks came after he had dropped India’s No 1 player Sanam K Singh. ‘‘I could see that a natural hardcourt player like him was struggling on the clay surface’’, Vasant said.

The semi-final was lost 2-1, and Vasant acceoted the charge that the team, having already entered the world group, took its foot off the pedal. ‘‘Yes, the boys did relax, but they are at a developing stage and it was only expected that it would happen.’’

However, they regrouped for the play-off against Taiwan and won.

The tournament bodes well for the future, says Vasant, especially the form of Rupesh and Sumit. ‘‘Sumit and Rupesh have grown because of these qualifiers. They have matured and have shown an urge to learn.’’

The focus now shifts to the Indian girls who began their campaign on Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur with a bid to qualify for the Junior Fed Cup. Last year, Sania Mirza led India to fifth place in this tournament.