Pune girl Salsa Aher wins highest ranking AITA national tournament

In the girls’ under-16 final, Salsa played compact tennis to beat Prinkle Singh 6-2, 6-0. (Source: Express Photo)

TILL LAST year, Pune girl Salsa Aher’s All India Tennis Association (AITA) ranking in U-16 age group in the country was 428. Since then, she has not only played various national-level tournaments but also won them consistently. On October 15, Salsa won the Fenesta Open in Delhi, regarded as the highest-ranking AITA national tournament in the country. With this win, her rank is expected to jump to no 5 now.

In the girls’ under-16 final, Salsa played compact tennis to beat Prinkle Singh 6-2, 6-0. “Last year, I was the runners-up for girls under 14. This year, I said to myself that I have to win the under 16. It’s like a dream,” said the player who trains for six hours daily under coach Kedar Shah at Bounce Academy.

Talking about her final match, Salsa, who is a Class X student of Symbiosis School, said, “The challenging part was that Prinkle’s shots were flat and low; I had to bend to take her shots.” Besides AITA tournaments, Salsa has also played in ZP-level tennis tournaments and reached the top spot in Maharashtra U17 team to lead Maharashtra team at School Nationals in academic year 2015-16.