BENGALURU: Third-seeded Davis Cupper
Vishnu Vardhan fell victim to severe cramps and a spirited opponent in German sixth seed
Sami Reinwein
to crash out of the $15,000 India F5
ITF Futures tennis tournament
here on Thursday. The world No. 439, who battled for nearly three hours in tough conditions, lost his quarter-final match 7-6(7), 5-7, 3-6 at the KSLTA stadium.
Ranked No. 574, German Reinwein didn't give his opponent any easy points, stretching rallies and executing powerful forehand returns to perfection. The first set was a virtual baseline battle with both competitors showing their prowess. Although Vishnu managed a couple of openings, he was unable take control. With both players holding on to their serve, the set spilled into the tie-breaker.
Vishnu took an early 4-2 lead but that soon fizzled out as Reinwein squared the tie-break at 7-all. Vishnu's persistence paid off, as he forced his rival to hit a volley into the net to concede the set.
Unaffected by the setback, Reinwein went ahead 4-2 in the second set with a break in the sixth game after Vishnu made a couple of unforced errors. In the next game, the Indian broke back after Reinwein was at the wrong end of what he considered a questionable line call. Vishnu levelled at 4-4 as a livid Reinwein struggled to gain composure.
The motley crowd at the venue was denied another tight finish at 5-5 when Vishnu went down with cramps. Despite a medical time-out and attention from the physiotherapist, Vishnu struggled. The German then broke his opponent in the 12th game to take the set 7-5 and draw level.
With his movement hampered, Vishnu relied on the weapons he had at his disposal. His forehand winners bought him some time in the tie but Reinwein wasn't ready to surrender. The German won the decisive break and took the set 6-3 to set up a semifinal clash with Prajnesh Gunneswaran. The top seed cruised past fifth seed Vijay Sundar Prashanth 6-3, 6-3.
Meanwhile, second seed N Sriram Balaji scored a 6-3, 6-3 win over seventh seed
Siddarth Rawat
to set up a meeting with
Karunuday Singh
. The unseeded youngster accounted for compatriot Haadin Bava 6-2, 6-3.
Results (quarterfinals; prefix denotes seeding, Indians unless mentioned): 2-Sriram Balaji bt 7-Siddarth Rawat 6-3, 6-3; 1-Prajnesh Gunneswaran bt 5-Vijay Sundar Prashanth 6-3, 6-3; 6-Sami Reinwein (Ger) bt 3-Vishnu Vardhan 6-7(7), 7-5, 6-3; Karunuday Singh bt Haadin Bava 6-2, 6-3.
Start a Conversation
Post comment