Team Herald
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PANJIM: Prajat Halankar stole the spotlight with a steely performance in the men’s singles quarter-finals, overpowering Raju Kundaikar 6-3 to book his place in the semi-finals of Bandodkar Panjim Gymkhana Tennis Open at the Panjim Gymkhana courts, Campal, here, on Thursday.
The men’s singles draw also saw Prince D’Silva edge out Nagesh Naik, emerging victorious 6-4 in a match that could’ve tipped either way.
The men’s doubles also heated up with a dominant display from Prince D’Silva and Punit Fadte, who advanced past Pankaj Naik and Sachin Ambre, while Ganesh Vernekar and Bhalchandra Gaitonde crushed Tanay Amonkar and Manoj Pandey 6-0. Siddharth Nunes and Nagesh Naik also looked sharp in a convincing 6-1 win over Allan Fernandes and James Darbar.
In a commanding performance in the Masters 45+ men’s doubles final, Sachin Dukle and Kevin Rebello were flawless, defeating Mano Chhabra and Suraj Pombra 6-0, 6-0 to lift the title with authority.
In the ladies singles, the much-anticipated quarter-final between sisters Tithee Bhoomkar and Bhaavya Bhoomkar unfolded with high emotion and clinical shot-making. Top seed Tithee lived up to her billing, overpowering her younger sibling 6-1. In another match in the same category, Poojal Naik blanked Kimberly Cabral 6-0 in a dominant display and Raisa Menezes held off Aastha Dua 6-4 in one of the tighter matches of the day.
The mixed doubles quarter-finals were packed with surprises and high-octane exchanges. The shocker of the evening came as the formidable pairing of Tithee Bhoomkar and Raju Kundaikar were knocked out in a tight 7-5 duel by siblings Aishwarya Nunes and Siddharth Nunes.
Raisa Menezes and Santosh Gorawar combined efficiently to take down Poojal Naik and Pankaj Nanoskar 6-3, while Tanya Shelyazhynska and Arup Angle edged past Tomoyo Fujita and Prajat Halankar 6-4 in a closely contested affair. Asuntha Fleming and Nagesh Naik held their nerve for a 6-3 win over Liza George and Prince D’Silva, completing the semifinal lineup.
In the boys U-18 quarter-finals, the competition was fierce, but Kyan Mavany, Shreyas Patil, Arhan Gaunkar and Punit Fadte all sailed through with dominant performances. Kyan was particularly ruthless in his 6-0 win over Ethan Ataide, while Shreyas continued his solid run by blanking Vedant Naik 6-0.
The boys U-14 category witnessed Arhan Gaunkar’s relentless performance as he effortlessly dispatched Shaurya Verlekar 4-0, 4-0 in the semi-finals, setting a benchmark for his peers. Over in the girl’s U-18 division, Tithee Bhoomkar and Tvisha Sardesai were in brilliant form - Tithee edged past Urvi Panandiker 4-1 in both sets, while Tvisha delivered a perfect display against Bhaavya Bhoomkar, winning both sets 4-0 to cruise into the final showdown.
In boys U-10, Arsh Sardesai and Devaansh Naik will face off in the final after contrasting semi-final wins. Arsh was pushed to the brink in a dramatic 4-1, 1-4, 10-5 victory over Christian Fernandes, while Devaansh breezed past Jai Mehta 4-0, 4-0.
In the girls U-10 semi-finals, Samaira Patil fought through a back-and-forth thriller to advance past Aaliya Metry, while Subhagya Manda edged Myra Borkar in a gritty, hard-fought clash.