BHUBANESWAR 03-May-2013 348
Chinmay Pradhan became the first tennis player from Odisha to win an AITA men`s singles title today. He achieved the glory, getting the better of unseeded Neeraj Choudhary of Madhya Pradesh by 2-1 sets in the final of the AITA-OTA 30K Men’s Ranking Tournament at Gurukul Tennis Complex, Mendhasal, near here.
After losing the first set without a fight, second seed Pradhan rallied beautifully to take the next two and the match 1-6, 6-4, 6-2. The maiden men`s title fetched Odisha No 1 Pradhan 15 ranking points and a cash prize of Rs 4,500. Currently ranked 63rd in AITA men`s circuit, 22-year-old Pradhan is hoping to break into the top 50 in the updated ranking list, which is expected to be released later this month.
A mass communication student of Utkal University, Pradhan said the title triumph had immensely boosted his confidence. ``This was my second AITA men`s singles final match and I was determined to win. Now I feel pretty confident about my game and hope to carry on in the same vein,`` said Chinmay, who gave the credit of his triumph to coach Santosh Mallik and trainer Dillip Rout.
Earlier, Pradhan registered a 6-1, 6-4 semifinal win over Sai Nikhil M (AP), while Choudhary overcame Farid Alam (West Bengal) 7-5 6-2. In the quarterfinals, Pradhan outclashed Rohit Rampuria, while Choudhary eliminated top seed Manoj Kumar Sewa (West Bengal). Tamil Nadu-Karnataka duo of Fahad Mohammad and Vikram Naidu pocketed the doubles crown, outplaying West Bengal pair of Mohammad Azhar and Farid Alam in the final 6-3, 6-3.
Among other Odisha players, Avilash Mishra beat Karnataka’s Akshay Kishore 6-2, 6-3 in the first-round match before he was beaten by Mohammad Azhar (WB) 6-2, 6-1 in pre-quarterfinals. Similarly Santosh Mallik defeated L Harsha (Kar) 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 in the first round before losing to Farid Alam (WB) 3-6, 4-6. However, Satirtha Patnaik and Nishant Mohant fell at the first hurdle. Nasir Malik (Chd) beat Nishant 6-3, 6-1; Sai Nikhil M (AP) prevailed over Satirtha 6-4, 7-6 (3).
The tournament was earlier inaugurated by Commerce & Transport Minister Subrat Tarai. Odisha Tennis Association secretary Madhusudan Padhi, organising secretary G S Mastana, tournament director Dr P K Pradhan and tournament referee Jatin Batsya were present on the occasion.
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PHOTO: Chinmay Pradhan with the trophy in Bhubaneswar on May 3, 2013.
