JOIN USAnother early exit for India in doubles
Sania Mirza and Prarthana Thombare were left to rue the missed opportunities as they crashed out in the Olympic Games women’s doubles first round.
Sania and Prarthana lost to China’s Peng Zhuai and Zhang Zhuai 6-7 (8), 7-5, 5-7 in a two-hour 45-minute marathon on Saturday night at the Olympic Tennis Centre. Their exit means India have interest left only in the mixed doubles segment, where Sania partners Rohan Bopanna.
The Indian duo seemed in control for a large part of the match but they came up short against the never-say-die spirit of the Chinese duo, who fought back from every setback to emerge with smiles on their faces.
The Indians produced some sparkling shots, especially Prarthana who caught the eye with her crafty play and timely interceptions at the net.
But her serve proved to be a weak link while Sania too didn’t step it up at crucial moments. Despite holding advantage, they could not press it home.
“I know you guys expect a lot from me, I know the Indian fans expect us to do well. Whenever I play, the fans want me to win the gold medal. But all we can do is try our best, something we did tonight. There is no guarantee in sport after all,” said Sania after the match.
She also defended her team-mate strongly. “Stop attacking her,” she said. “She is 190 in the world. She has just played against people who are top-50, so don’t be hard on her.
We just played a two-hour 45-minute match against the best in the world. As athletes, we can fight our hearts out, that is what we did. You come up short on some days but I am happy that we are able to share this experience, especially for her. I hope she realises that she can play against the best and match them.”
Looking back, a vital moment passed the Indians by in the first set when Sania served for it at 5-4. But the Chinese broke through and then pushed the set to the tie-break, taking it 8-6.
The one-hour 11-minute battle didn’t sap the spirit out of the Indian pairing. With cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar among the audience, Sania and Prarthana fought back gamely, breaching Zhang’s serve in the 12th game to wrap up the set.
In the decider, India were down 4-5 when Sania lost her serve in the ninth game but again they clawed back and the Chinese too seemed to crack as Zhang double-faulted at break-point to level the scores.
At 5-5, another big moment arrived and this time, it was Prarthana who slipped up. With her serves lacking in bite, the Chinese stepped up the attack to gain the break. Zhang then served out the match in superb fashion, a Peng tap-in at the net applying finishing touches to a long night.
“It is a tough competition, that is why it is the Olympics,” said Sania. “We will try whatever we can to win a medal for India. If we don’t win, that is unfortunate but we will give our heart and soul,” added the doubles ace, looking forward to the mixed doubles race.
“At this stage, my Olympics is still there, I have mixed doubles and I hope to do well there.”