Hosts blanked by Thailand

There were two areas in which the Thais outshone the Indians at the World Junior tennis championships semi-finals at the DLTA today. Off court, their resounding cheers drowned out the smattering of Indian voices, while on it, they subjected the hosts to a 3-0 defeat. This loss means India will play for third place against top seeds Indonesia.

In the first match , Rishika Sunkara was up against Napatsakom Sankaew. The Indian recovered from being a break down after the very first game, and successfully executed her own array of shots through the match 8212; the backhand down the line being particularly effective 8212; but victory was not to be. A break in the crucial ninth game of the first set enabled her opponent to serve it out for a set8217;s lead, and it was deacute;jagrave; vu in the second, as another ninth-game break helped the Thai player serve out the match.

An hour and twenty minutes was all it took for Sankaew to get her country a 1-0 lead with a 6-4, 6-4 win.

Aishwarya Aggarwal, playing against Luksika Kumkhum, started strong, and even though her 4-0 lead was whittled down to 4-2, she kept trying, and made the first set hers. A 2-0 lead in the second set, though, evaporated, and a medical timeout later, the proceedings were level. The Indian had her chances but didn8217;t take them 8212; a simple short ball slammed into the net in the sixth game just one glaring instance of her missed opportunities.

It was all downhill from there 8212; she won just three more games. This 6-3, 3-6, 1-6 result put India beyond reach of the final. Jarunwadee Kaewma and Sankaew defeated Nova Patel and Sunkara 7-5, 6-3 in doubles.