Fazaluddin, Mankad to clash in final
Davis Cupper Syed Fazaluddin of West Bengal made a late charge to defeat top seeded Vinod Sridhar
of Tamil Nadu 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 and set up a title clash against
Maharashtra's Harsh Mankad in the Indian Oil-Servo tennis championship at the Krishnan Tennis Centre in Madras on Wednesday.
Mankad scored an easy 6-1, 6-3 victory over Saurav
Panja of West Bengal in the other semi-final.
In the first semi-final, Fazaluddin could not get his
act together initially, as Sridhar broke him twice to lead
3-0. But he made amends for his lapses and got
back into the game, claiming the next four games in a row with
a variety of strokes. However, Sridhar did not give up and clinched the next three games for the set.
In the second set, Fazaluddin turned the heat on Sridhar
and raced to a 4-0 lead. After Sridhar broke Fazaluddin
in the fifth and held his serve, the rivals won their
respective games, before Fazaluddin neutralised the set score.
Fazaluddin, who raised his game to good effect and also
played at an increased pace, was at total command in the third
set. Sridhar was able to win his service game (third) only
once before losing the set and the match.
Mankad had a relatively easy time against Panja. The Bengal boy
failed to get his usual rhythm and was never allowed to settle down.