Mumbai, Dec 7 Sumit Nagal, India's top singles player, was in great form as he powered Gujarat Panthers into the semifinals of the Tennis Premier League (TPL) Season 6 at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai on Saturday They were the last team to secure their place in the semifinals.
The TPL moved into the business end of the tournament, with the qualifying spots confirmed after the final round of league games on Saturday. Yash Mumbai Eagles, Hyderabad Strikers, Rajasthan Rangers and Gujarat Panthers will be playing for the title.
In the final match of the day, the Gujarat Panthers faced the Chennai Smashers with all to play for. In the Women’s Singles category, Conny Perrin gave her side the ideal start with a 16-9 win against Ekaterina Kazionova. The Men’s Singles game saw Sumit Nagal securing a 15-10 win against Hugo Gaston.
The Gujarat Panthers pairing of Ekaterina Kazionova and Vijay Sundar Prashanth faced Conny Perrin and Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli, with the former winning that encounter 15-10. With all to play for in the Men’s Doubles category, Sumit Nagal and Vijay Sundar Prashanth won a humdinger of a contest by 13-12 against Hugo Gaston and Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli. With a 52-48 win, the Gujarat Panthers confirmed their qualification spot for the final day.
Earlier, the fifth day witnessed some edge-of-the-seat action as the teams left no stone unturned to try and cement their spot for the final day. In the opening match, the Punjab Patriots faced Hyderabad Strikers. The Women's Singles category saw Harriet Dart of Hyderabad Strikers carry on her impressive run, winning against Elina Avanesyan of Punjab Patriots 16-9.
Punjab Patriots fought back as Mukund Sasikumar got the better of Benjamin Lock, triumphing 18-7 in the Men's Singles category. In the Mixed Doubles category, Hyderabad Strikers Harriet Dart and Vishnu Vardhan defeated Elina Avanesyan and Saketh Myneni of Punjab Patriots with a score of 14-11.
With only one point separating the two teams, it was all to play for in the Men's Doubles category. Mukund Sasikumar and Saketh Myneni of Punjab Patriots managed to clinch a 13-12 win over Vishnu Vardhan and Benjamin Lock of Hyderabad Strikers. Punjab Patriots eventually prevailed with a score of 51-49 against Hyderabad Strikers.
In the second match of the day, Rajasthan Rangers took on Bengaluru SG Pipers. Gabriela Knutson of Bengaluru SG Pipers defeated Cristina Dinu 14-11 in a cracking contest in the Women's Singles category. Arthur Fery of Rajasthan Rangers won a nail-biter against Bernabe Zapata Miralles, securing a 13-12 victory in the Men's Singles category.
In the Mixed Doubles category, Anirudh Chandrasekar and Gabriela Knutson of Bengaluru SG Pipers defeated Rohan Bopanna and Cristina Dinu of Rajasthan Rangers 13-12. In the Men's Doubles category, the duo of Rohan Bopanna and Arthur Fery fought tooth and nail to win against Bernabe Zapata Miralles and Anirudh Chandrasekhar 14-11. The match ended in a deadlock as both sides finished with 50 points apiece, giving the Tennis Premier League its first tie of the season.
The third match was another thriller between Bengal Wizards and Yash Mumbai Eagles. Zeynep Sonmez delivered a classy display to overcome Kamilla Rakhimova 15-10 in the Women’s Singles category. Karan Singh and Sriram Balaji played out another hard-fought contest in the Men’s Singles category, with the latter getting over the line 13-12.
Zeynep Sonmez and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan clinched another tight contest against Kamilla Rakhimova and Siddhant Banthia, with the Yash Mumbai Eagles duo winning 13-12 in the Mixed Doubles. In the Men’s Doubles category, Siddhant Banthia and Sriram Balaji got a 15-10 win against Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Karan Singh, resulting in the second tie of the day with both teams at 50 points each.
After five days of exhilarating action on the court, the sixth season of the Tennis Premier League has its semifinalists. Yash Mumbai Eagles top the points table with 265 points and will face Gujarat Panthers, who finished in fourth place with 253 points. The second semi-final will see Hyderabad Strikers, who finished in second place with 260 points, take on the Rajasthan Rangers, who finished third place with 255 points.
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