When they decided to pair up for the Sunfeast Open, little did Sania Mirza and Virginia Ruano Pascual realise that they would be packed out of the singles main draw on the same day at almost the same time on adjacent courts. Sania lost 0-6, 4-6, 4-6 to Hungary’s Melinda Czink, while Pascual lost to Estonian Karia Kanepi 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (8-6), 1-6. The nearly two-hour pre-quarter final between Sania and Melinda Czink had drama written all over it: Sania slamming her racket in frustration in a rare display of emotion, both shaking their heads in disapproval over calls they thought were bad. Then there were those Sania double-faults on the most crucial points, The crowd was cheering their icon and on court it was a see-saw. There were less fans today but the pressure of performing to a demanding audience was great. Most had assumed that Sania would win. It was a god beginning, the way she breezed through the set without losing a game. Her deadly forehands were at their best. She was devastating with her backhand too. Her serves too were landing good. Then the teenager’s game faltered. It is tricky playing a left-hander. Czink’s sliced serves were moving away sharply away from the right-hander’s backhand. The Hungarian, even after being mauled in the first set, came out strong in the second. Sania, who had been blasting winners off the forehand and backhand and who punished most serves of her opponent by angling it cross court, now only managed to net them. She was broken in the opening game as Czink suddenly woke up to regroup her game. Sania’s coach John Farrington had mentioned only yesterday that they didn’t have the time to work on Sania’s serve and smoothen the chinks in her game due to her stomach injury. The Hungarian, ranked 122 in the world, displayed intelligent tennis as Sania found herself chasing the ball on the wrong end. The shake of the head from the Indian told the entire story. Myskina cruises Kolkata: It’s hard to believe that current World No. 12 and 2004 French Open champion Anastasia Myskina still talks about improving her game. The former World No. 2 began her Sunfeast Open campaign with a 6-1, 6-0 demolition of little-known Romanian Edina Gallovits on a day Sania Mirza was sensationally knocked out. Did Sania’s exit surprise her? “Sania’s opponent played remarkably well and deserved to win,” she said. Her modesty came through when she said that despite the upset, she still didn’t consider herself the favourite here. “There are so many girls who are playing well and I don’t consider myself the favourite,” she said. —Jaydip Sengupta
