Vaidehi Chaudhari recovered from a slow start to beat Sandeepti Singh Rao 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 in the final of the $15,000 ITF women’s tennis tournament at the Tennis Project, Baliawas, on Sunday.
It was an impressive culmination to three weeks of sustained high quality performance by the 23-year-old Vaidehi, who has been trained for long by coach JIgnesh Rawal in Ahmedabad.
After the final and semifinal appearance over the earlier fortnight on clay in Jhajjar, it was an admirable shift to the hard courts for Vaidehi.
“I had knee and shoulder issues today. So, I was not worried about the result. I wanted to play my best, whatever was possible. Am happy to win my second title”, said Vaidehi, after a strong fare in the final when she was not rushed and played sensibly.
Apart from 14 matches in singles over three weeks, Vaidehi had also played 11 matches in doubles, which meant a lot of action and continuous pounding of her limbs.
It will be interesting to see how Vaidehi steps up her game over the next two weeks in the $25,000 and $40,000 events in Bengaluru, so as to build on the firm foundation that she has made for the season.
It was the second singles title for Vaidehi who had won her maiden title in Gwalior in November last year.
It was disheartening for the 19-year-old Sandeepti to lose her second successive final. But, it has to be remembered that it was only her fourth tournament in the international circuit. In both the finals, against Zeel Desai last week and Vaidehi now, Sandeepti had won the first set.
It should be a matter of time before she gets it right to win her first title.
In an impressive presentation, a young girl sang a song before Vaidehi received her trophy.
The results (final): Vaidehi Chaudhari bt Sandeepti Singh Rao 4-6, 6-2, 6-0.
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