GURUGRAM, March 2, 2024 (Press Release)
The winds which followed the unseasonal rain swept away the top two seeds in the women’s singles of the Federal Bank ITF Women’s Open, Gurugram ITF World Tennis Tour W35 event. In the semifinals played at The Tennis Project here on Saturday, top seed Dalila Jakupovic of Slovenia was undone by third seed Justina Mikulskyte of Lithuania in a tough three-setter 4-6, 2-6, 7-6 (0) while India’s best bet and second seed Ankita Raina succumbed to the unseeded Korean Yeonwoo Ku 6-7 (4), 3-6.
Later, Raina joined hands with Zhibek Kulambayeva to lift the doubles title. The Indo-Kazakh pair brushed aside the challenge of Jacqueline Cabaj Awad of Sweden and and Justina Mikulskyte in straight sets 6-4, 6-2. The winners bagged US $ 1,437 and 35 WTA Ranking points for their effort while the runners-up were richer by US$ 719 and 23 WTA Ranking points.
In the singles semifinals, Raina found herself on the wrong foot in the opening game itself where she lost her serve. The 31-year-old warmed up only by the third game as she erased a 0-2 deficit and led 3-2 with a break in the fourth game. However, she lost her serve once again in the 7th game which facilitated for a tie-breaker. Relying heavily on her double handed backhand, Raina found herself a bit short losing 4-7.
Things replicated in the second set for the first five games, where Raina once again after trailing 0-2, was leading 3-2 with a break in the third and the fifth game. However, the 20-year-old Ku moved better on court and with deft placing of the ball troubled her fancied opponent often which made Raina commit a lot of unforced errors. Ku who would be vying for her third ITF World Tennis Tour title on Sunday, won four games in a row with two breaks in the 6th and 8th games to wrap up the set and the match.
Results
Singles Semifinals
Yeonwoo Ku (KOR) bt 2-Ankita Raina 7-6 (4), 6-3;
3-Justina Mikulskyte (LTU) bt 1-Dalila Jakupovic (SLO) 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (0)
Doubles Finals
1-Zhibek Kulambayeva (KAZ)/Ankita Raina bt Jacqueline Cabaj Awad (SWE)/Justina Mikulskyte (LTU) 6-4, 6-2.
