Tara sad to miss out on wild card for Oz Open

The winner of this tournament is granted a place in the main draw at the first Grand Slam of the year, but a straight sets loss to former Asian Games gold medallist Tulyaganova laid that plan to rest.

“I think she played her best match of the tournament in the final, hats off to her. Going into the match, I wasn’t thinking about the wild card at all, but I was definitely more disappointed at missing out on that, much more than not winning the title,” admitted Tara after returning to the Capital.

However, there could be hope yet. At the moment, it is Iroda who gets the wild card, but if her ranking improves over the next few months, she could gain direct entry to the Slam. “If she moves into the top 100, then I will get the wild card. All I can do is hope and pray,” laughs the 19-year-old. Tara is currently ranked 350th on the ITF circuit—her best position so far. Iroda is ranked 148 at the moment.

She has been having a good run this year, and her final appearance at the Asian Championships made sure it continues. Four titles in 2007 is proving the hard work isn’t in vain, and even though she has been playing a lot of tournaments week in and week out, she says it isn’t too much tennis. “As long as you do your rehabilitation exercises properly and take the necessary precautions, it’s all right.”

This week, her only appearance on court will be for training, while next week it’s back to the circuit at the Sunfeast Open in Kolkata. “I am expecting a wild card for the tournament, but I don’t know that for sure,” said Tara. “After that, I will probably be playing a few Challengers in either Europe or Australia, but I have to discuss the itinerary with my father and coach.”