Kalaburagi is buzzing with excitement as the ITF W35 tournament’s main draw ceremony unfolded on Monday, promising a thrilling week of tennis action. With a $30,000 prize purse on the line, five Indian players have battled through the qualifying rounds to secure spots in the singles main draw, ensuring a strong home presence.
Top seeds are gearing up for intense clashes right from the start. Third seed Vaishnavi Adkar faces Chevika Reddy Sama in what could be a pulsating opener. In the top half, fifth seed Jheel Desai awaits a qualifier, while eighth seed Ankita Raina takes on Sonal Patil. The stakes are high as fourth seed Shrivali Rashmika Bhamidipati meets Evgenia Birdina, and second seed Anchisa launches her campaign against Britain’s Allegra Korpanec Davis.
The doubles main draw adds to the fervor, led by top seeds Shrivali Rashmika Bhamidipati and Jasmin Gimbrere. They face the Thai duo of Anchisa Chanta and Thasaporn Naklo in their opener. Indian pairs like Singdha Kanta and Harshini N Nagraj, Kashish Bhatia and Vanshita Pathania, and Shrimanya Reddy Anugonda and Sai Sahitha Chamarti received wildcards, giving emerging talents valuable international exposure.
Qualifying rounds delivered edge-of-the-seat drama earlier in the day. Arunakumar Lakshmi Prabha edged out Maria Mikhailova 6-2, 3-6, 10-6 in a tense tie-break. Singapore’s second seed Eva Marie Desvignes crushed Ahan Ahan 6-0, 6-1, while third seed Valeria Savinikh defeated Soumya Ronde 6-4, 6-1. Kashish Bhatia overcame Mahika Khanna 7-6(4), 6-0.
Other notable results included Aishwarya Jadhav beating 16th seed Shrimanya Reddy Anugonda 6-3, 6-3, and ninth seed Sandipti Singh Rao downing Karnataka’s Snigdha Kanta 6-4, 6-3. Fourteenth seed Lakshmishri outlasted eighth seed Bela Tamhankar 7-5, 3-6, 14-12, and seventh seed Anna Sedysheva triumphed over tenth seed Yashaswini Panwar 6-4, 6-2.
As the tournament progresses, fans can expect high-quality matches blending international prowess with Indian grit, setting the stage for potential upsets and triumphs.