Netherlands Suzan Lamens returns during her win over India's Sahaja Yamalapalli in the Billie Jean King Cup at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium on Sunday.
Credit: DH PHOTO/ PUSHKAR V
Bengaluru: India wrapped up their Billie Jean King Cup playoff weekend with a 0-2 loss to the Netherlands, dropping both singles rubbers in straight sets at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium on Sunday.
Shrivalli Bhamidipatty lost 2-6, 4-6 to Anouk Koevermans while Sahaja Yamalapalli went down 2-6, 3-6 to Suzan Lamens to disappoint the home crowd, who came in strong numbers.
With Slovenia having already clinched the group on Saturday, this was an inconsequential tie, but India still finished bottom of Group G after struggling to match the intensity and precision of their higher-ranked rivals.
The gap in rankings told its story early as Shrivalli (world No. 381) and Sahaja (No. 309) simply couldn’t sustain pressure against Koevermans (No. 198) and Lamens (No. 87), even though both teams were playing purely for pride. India had their moments -- rare, spirited pockets that briefly energised the home supporters -- but neither match tilted long enough in blue’s favour to threaten a turnaround.
The 23-year-old Shrivalli actually started with a bit of spark, unlike in her Saturday’s three-set defeat to Tamara Zidansek. She went 1-0 up with a cracking forehand winner against her 21-year-old Dutch rival, raising hopes in the home stands but that didn’t last.
Two untimely unforced errors on her serve opened the door for Koevermans, who pounced with a crisp volley after a weak second serve from the Indian.
Shrivalli had a golden chance to break back at 1-3, especially with Koevermans throwing in two double faults, but every time the rally dragged on, it was the Dutch player who dictated terms. Soon the set was over at 2-6 as Anouk shifted into full control, delighting the handful orange-clad fans with sharp serve-and-volley patterns.
The second set was more balanced Shrivalli fought hard, even taking a 2-1 lead with more intensity in her strokes. At 2-2, she had a look at a break point thanks to a couple of errors from Koevermans, but again, the Dutch player shut the door with a serve-and-volley one-two punch followed by an ace.
The contrast in their service games became obvious soon as Anouk kept firing aces and charging confidently to the net. Meanwhile, Shrivalli struggled with her first serve, even throwing in a costly double fault that handed the Dutch a crucial break.
The Indian did salvage a good hold at 4-5, but by then Koevermans knew the set was hers to lose, and she wrapped it up 6-4 with another solid service game.
Sahaja off-colour
For Sahaja, the match began on the back foot and never really recovered. 26-year-old Lamens came out firing and broke Sahaja straight away, racing to 0-4 as the Indian sprayed errors and failed to win points on her first serve.
Sahaja finally steadied herself to get on the board at 1-4, even showing flashes of brilliance later with some sharp forehand winners. But Lamens sealed the set 6-2 with an ace to underline her authority.
The second set saw Sahaja regroup briefly. Though Lamens again broke first for 0-1, Sahaja clawed back to 2-2, helped by two Dutch unforced errors and much-improved serving. The 25-year-old Indian fought through long rallies and matched Lamens from the baseline, but the consistency deserted her again.
A love hold for Lamens broke Sahaja’s resistance at 3-4, and the Indian’s error-heavy final game, featuring multiple deuces, ended with a wide return that closed the match 6-2, 6-3 for the Dutch No. 1.
Results: India lt to Netherlands X-X (Shrivalli Bhamidipatty lt to Anouk Koevermans 2-6, 4-6; Sahaja Yamalapalli lt to Suzan Lamens 2-6, 3-6).