New Delhi: Eg Delhi Weather Over the past two days, from a cold and chilly Tuesday evening to a warm and hot Wednesday afternoon, Vaishnavi Udkar’s fortunes and performance in the BJK Cup also differed.On Tuesday, against Indonesia’s Onchisa Chinta, she was sidelined by the left-hander’s shot-making, with nerves deciding her debut for the national team.A day later, starting the Asia/Oceania Group 1 tie against New Zealand, she was on the money with her forehand and a foul served. In a match that lasted one hour and 30 minutes, he defeated New Zealand’s Ashidas 6-2, 6-4 to earn his first win in national team colours.
“It’s something I’ve been looking forward to for years. To be in the team, not just as a reserve, but as one of the five players. So to be able to get the win is really special because it means a lot. Because there’s a lot of emotion behind it,” she told reporters after the win.“So it feels really special. Especially when it’s at home, and I get the crowd support and everything. It really means a lot,” he continued.The far more experienced Indian, who became the top-ranked Indian this week, made the most of a inconsistent show from world number 1151 Das. Ironically, less than 24 hours after he repeatedly served under the pump, Adkar ended the first set with an ace. The 21-year-old cut her lead and broke to take the second set at 4-4. But the Indian immediately hit back as Das’ number of errors went against his chances of forcing a decider. He admitted that changes in weather and conditions played a role.“Yeah, when it’s cold, the ball travels a little faster. And when it’s hot, the ball feels heavier, and it travels a little slower. So definitely, it was more controlled today than yesterday. So I think that really helped me a lot, too,” he said.
Sahaja Yamla Play in Action (Photo by DLTA)
Vaishnavi was not the only Indian to celebrate the milestone win. Sahaja Yamlapalli also registered his first win for India colors in the team event. Since making her debut against China in 2024, she has gone through ties against New Zealand, Thailand, Korea, Slovenia, the Netherlands and Thailand to finish only second.In the resumption of the match on Wednesday morning, Sahaja took to the court again hoping to pick up her first win after Patcharyan suffered a three-set defeat at the hands of Sashe Chandij.She not only sealed her first ‘W’ in dispatching Valentina Ivanova 6-1, 6-3 but also assured India of an unbeaten scoreline.“Definitely I’m happy. I know my record in the BJK Cup hasn’t been great but I’ve played really tough matches as well. So it was tough to get the W. But I’m happy to have a win under my belt.“I don’t want to look at it that way either. I want to take it one match at a time and focus on what I can do and not on my record,” she told TimesofIndia.com after the match.
Vaishnavi Adkar serving (Photo by DLTA)
Sahaja, who came through the US collegiate system, was broken to start but quickly bounced back to win the next eight games in a row, including the first set along the way.Ivanov attempted a comeback in the second set, brought things back on serve, and then saved three break points but could not hold out the fourth set.Yamalapalli sealed the deal in the first match, forcing Ivanov into an error.Rutoja Bhosle and Ankita Raina beat Monique Berry and Erin Rotliff 6-4, 6-2 to claim their second win of the day to put India 3-0 up.
BJK Cup Asia/Oceania Group 1 First Day Scores
- India 1-2 Thailand
- Korea 3-0 Mongolia
- New Zealand 1-2 Indonesia
Day 2 Scores from BJK Cup Asia/Oceania Group 1
- India 3-0 New Zealand
- Indonesia 3-0 Mongolia
- Korea 3-0 Thailand
