Second string a dull note

NEW DELHI, NOV 24: The supposedly best Indian hope of the next century was banished to the sidelines. That was no consolation considering...

NEW DELHI, NOV 24: The supposedly best Indian hope of the next century was banished to the sidelines. That was no consolation considering the appalling tennis dished out by two other hopefuls in the MTNL Asia Cup at the DTA Complex today. Mustafa Ghouse and Vijay Kannan, turning out for the second string India A, made a hash of the big opportunity to hand over the quarter-final tie to the Japanese. It was gift-wrapped so well that the Japanese would have been instant converts to Indian hospitality.

It is debatable whether Sunil Kumar, the 16-year-old national champion who was not given a match, would have made a difference to the 0-2 result. But then Shyam Minotra, captain of India A could have done a Naresh Kumar and thrown the boy to the deep end and watch him sink or swim. That did not happen and Satoshi Iwabuchi and then Terachi Takahiro had a rollicking time on Centre Court to take their team to the semifinals.

Iwabuchi almost toyed with Ghouse for a 6-1, 6-4 verdict while Takahiro had enough variety in his game to snuff out Kannan8217;s challenge which seemed to splutter and stop.

With all attention being centred on the Chandigarh boy ever since he won the Nationals, the time, it seemed, would have been ripe to give Sunil Kumar a feel of team tennis. Because there were hardly anybody who thought that India A could really pull off a coup. With no pressure, Kumar could have done his bit and maybe given that semblance of hope that there could still be light in the 21st century.

If body language is an indicator of the confidence levels, then the Japanese just had to stay put on court. The Indians8217; poor body language seemed to have seeped into their tennis so well that both Iwabuchi and Takahiro had to play awfully to lose a set. Effort, if any, was confined to merely hanging in there and not try and unsettle the Japanese and make a match of it.

Vijay Kannan began well with sharp strokes and handsome volleys. He even went a break up in the fourth game of the first set. Normally, when a player goes up a break he raises his game. But here, Kannan became so uptight that he did not hold serve after that and went a set down in a jiffy. Not only that. He won just two points off Takahiro8217;s serve in the sixth and eighth games.

In the third game of the second, Kannan enjoyed a rare luxury of five break points but the killer instinct was embarassingly absent. In the ninth, Kannan played the big points well to get the break and had to serve out the second set. He didn8217;t win a point while serving for the set and when Takahiro8217;s backhand volley sealed the break, there was little left for the poor Kannan.

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In the tie-breaker, Kannan, down 1-4, made it 4-4 only to lose it 7-4.

India Seniors will meet China tomorrow for a place in the semifinal, while India A8217; will play for minor placings.

Results:
Thailand bt South Korea 2-0 Pisuth-Arnonth Ekkarin bt Lee Seung Hun 6-3 7-6 9; Narathorne Srichapan bt Baek Seung Bok 7-5 6-2
Japan bt India A Satoshi Iwabuchi bt Mustafa Ghouse 6-1 6-4; Terachi Takahiro bt Vijay Kannan 6-3 7-6 4
Semifinals:
Uzbekistan v Thailand; Japan v winner of India/ China