Raveena Kingsley, Karman Kaur Thandi notch wins.
By Sujeet Rajan
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FLUSHING MEADOWS, NEW YORK: America’s rising tennis sensation Natasha Subhash, 14, continued her dream run in the 2015 US Open, notching up her third consecutive victory over higher ranked and vastly more experienced players, to advance to the second round of the Junior Girls singles championship.
Subhash, of Fairfax, Virginia, who turned 14 last week, was in a dilemma to play or not in the championship after MRI scans on Sunday confirmed that she had faced damage to her right knee, during the course of her final qualifying match against Olivia Hauger of the US, on Saturday. Subhash had beaten India’s Mihika Yadav in the first qualifying match, on Friday.
Physicians who examined her advised couple of weeks’ rest to recover fully.
However, Subhash, who had got a Wild Card from the United States Tennis Association (USTA) for her debut Grand Slam – and has been given one for the main draw of the Junior Girls doubles championship as well – was determined to play, despite the discomfort of a heavily bandaged knee and hampered movement.
The result was nothing short of spectacular, as she blew away Beatrice Torelli, 18, of Italy, who is the current 60th ranked player in the world. Subhash won in three sets, 6-3, 1-6, 6-1.
Torelli, a top Italian junior, had played in the French Open earlier this year, in both the girls singles and doubles and interestingly lost in three sets in her opening match to the Hungarian Fanni Stollar, 16, who Subhash will face in the second round, on Tuesday.
The match between Subhash and Torelli was a fascinating one, with the former exerting pressure at will on the hapless Italian, who wilted under hard groundstrokes on either flanks and merciless noon sun which seemed to emerge as big a foe overhead as beyond the net. She even got a time violation for being a laggard in the shade.
Subhash broke Torelli in the second game and then held her serve with an ace to rack up a 3-0 lead in the first set, before the Italian got on the board. Subhash closed out the set with a second serve ace after being up 40-0.
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Torelli elevated her game in the second set, and prevailed, but the extra effort at running down balls seemed to drain her of energy, and of a plan and conviction to press forward. She was mostly left to play on the defensive in the decider, trying hard to just put the ball back into the other side of the court.
Subhash, on her part, seemed to have plotted the match like one would on a chess board. She didn’t seem bothered when a few drives were just beyond reach – which she didn’t exert to reach – but was content to stay on serve once she got the critical break in the first set.
After Torelli spent herself getting back into the game in the second set, Subhash just stepped into a higher gear in the third set and pushed hard on the gas pedal, to produce some stunning winners combined with intelligent serves. She amazes most people watching with with her consistent deft strokes, struck hard from both the forehand and the backhand.
Subhash was up 5-0 in the third set before Torelli managed to hold into a consolation serve game.
Subhash, despite her not being 100% fit on court, still managed to make her opponent fling from one side of the court to another, creating opportunities for winners.
Her drop shots were not as effective though today, bar a few, because she lacked deception because of the hurt knee, but her overhead smashes were bang on target, unlike her last match.
In a post-match interview to The American Bazaar, Subhash said she was happy the way she played in the first and third set. She complimented Torelli for a good second set.
“I’m really feeling confident right now. I want to see how far I can go,” Subhash said.
As Subhash gets more match experience, she seems to get more wily on court, with a maturity that belies her young age. She made very few unforced errors today, and none at all when it really mattered.
Subhash was congratulated after the match by former US player and world no. 7, Kathy Rinaldi, who was a Wimbledon semi-finalist. Also watching the match and applauding for Subhash was Head of Women’s Tennis, USTA, Ola Malmqvist. The latter must be lauded for her foresight in taking a chance on Subhash and giving her a Wild Card to play in the Open.
Later, India’s veteran player Leander Paes spoke to Subhash in the players’ lounge, and inquired of her injury and how she was feeling.
Subhash seems to be building a fan base as several young fans rushed to her after her match with Torelli, for autographs and selfies.
In other matches featuring Indian-origin girls, Raveena Kingsley, of Fulton, Maryland, who trains in California, began on a strong note in her quest for the Junior Girls championship, crushing Canada’s top player Bianca Andreescu, 6-1, 6-1. Kingsley is one of the favorites for the junior girls title this year.
The Indo Australian Naiktha Bains lost in straight sets to the USA’s K. Chen 3-6, 4-6.
The tall and lanky Karman Kaur Thandi of India, who has a powerful serve and a good forehand – when she doesn’t make umpteen errors – managed to prevail over a below par K Hobgarski of Germany, who was seeded 16th, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3).
Pranjala Yadlapalli of India, the 15th seed, lost in straight sets to V Grammatikopolou of Greece 6-7 (1-7), 1-6.
(This story was revised on September 8, 2015).