New Delhi, April 11: A fearless Vaishnavi Adkar rose to the occasion with an inspiring win over higher-ranked Sohyun Park to pull India level against South Korea, but Ankita Raina’s earlier defeat to Dayeon Back ended the hosts’ hopes of making the Billie Jean King Cup World Cup Play-offs here on Saturday.
Placed fourth in the standings at the start of the day, India needed a 3-0 sweep against Korea to break into the top two. Captain Vishal Uppal fielded his most experienced campaigner Ankita in the opening singles, but Dayeon quelled the home challenge, handing India a setback.
The 33-year-old Ankita, ranked 581, fought hard after a slow start against the 343rd-ranked Korean but eventually went down 1-6 5-7 in one hour and 55 minutes. She had not featured in singles prior to this tie, having played only doubles in the tournament.
India’s number one Vaishnavi then kept the contest alive, producing a gritty 7-6(2) 7-6(5) win over Park, who is ranked 107 places above her at 276.
With a likely fourth-place finish, India will remain in the Asia/Oceania Group I.
The two-hour-17-minute battle between Vaishnavi and Park was marked by frequent breaks of serve and high-quality rallies. Both players went for their shots, resulting in a fair share of unforced errors, but the intensity kept the contest finely poised.
Vaishnavi’s sharp cross-court backhands stood out, while Park impressed with her court coverage and angled forehand winners. The Indian briefly took a medical timeout in the second set for a back issue but showed no dip in intensity thereafter.
Vaishnavi earned her first match point in the 10th game of the second set after a forehand slice error from Park but failed to convert. Park held under pressure for 5-5, and then broke Vaishnavi in the 11th game to move within a game of forcing a decider.
However, Vaishnavi broke back immediately to push the set into a tie-break. Trailing 0-3 in the breaker, she mounted a strong comeback and sealed the match when Park netted a return.
Ankita and Rutuja Bhosale are set to play the concluding doubles rubber against Dayeon Back and Eunhye Lee. (PTI)
