All posts tagged: Sahaja Yamalapalli

After play-offs heartbreak last year, Ankita Raina and India set to start from scratch at BJK Cup

After play-offs heartbreak last year, Ankita Raina and India set to start from scratch at BJK Cup

Published by Webster

India qualified for the Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup Play-offs for only the second time last year, after finishing as the runners-up in Asia/Oceania Group I in Pune. They later played the Play-offs in Bengaluru, losing 0-3 to Netherlands and 0-2 to Slovenia. “It was amazing because in Pune we won and we qualified for the second time in history, which was huge, and we did it in India. Pune is where I trained, so it was special as well ,” Ankita Raina, who was a part of the team, fondly recalled in a conversation with The Bridge on Friday. “And then Bangalore again, it was special because we were having the playoffs in India for the first time, playing at home conditions, and we had a lot of crowd support. The organisation was amazing, so we couldn’t have asked for more. We missed very narrowly for qualifying,” she added. Speaking on the sidelines of a training session ahead of India’s 2026 BJK Cup Asia/Oceania Group I matches in Delhi, Raina reflected on the loss. …

AITA announces five-member squad for Billie Jean King Cup

AITA announces five-member squad for Billie Jean King Cup

Published by Webster

The All India Tennis Association (AITA) on Tuesday announced a five-member team for the Billie Jean King Cup Asia-Oceania Group I tournament at the DLTA Stadium from April 7-11. Sahaja Yamalapalli, Vaishnavi Adkar, Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, Rutuja Bhosale and Ankita Raina have been named in the team with Vaidehee Chaudhari as the reserve player. Vaishanvi will be making her debut at the BJK Cup. The 21-year-old etched her name into the record books after becoming the first Indian women’s singles player after Sania Mirza to reach a W100 Final. She, however, finished runner-up at the Bengaluru Open 2026. Vishal Uppal will lead the team, and Radhika Kanitkar has been named the coach. The team was finalised during the Professional Selection Committee on March 2. The coaching camp will be held a week before the event. The tournament will feature Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Thailand and Mongolia. All teams will play each other in a round robin format. Each tie will be a best-of-three affair, including two singles and one doubles match. The top …

Mumbai Open 2026: Sahaja Yamalapalli handed wild card

Mumbai Open 2026: Sahaja Yamalapalli handed wild card

Published by Webster

India’s No 1 women’s singles player, Sahaja Yamalapalli, has been given a wild card into the main draw at the upcoming 2026 Mumbai Open WTA 125K Series, which will be held at the Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association (MSLTA) in Mumbai. The main draw is scheduled from 2 to 8 February, 2026. In 2025, Sahaja made positive strides on the court highlighted by her ITF Tampico campaign, where she reached the women’s doubles semi final with Mexico’s Jessica Hinojosa Gomeza . She also played a major role in India’s second placed finish in the Asia-Oceania Group 1 stage of the Billie Jean King Cup in Pune and was also part of the team during the Play-Offs held in Bengaluru. Speaking about receiving the main draw wild card, the 25-year-old remarked, “I am extremely grateful to MSLTA for giving me the Wild Card. Playing a WTA event at home is always truly special and it means a lot to me. I am going to try and play my heart out in every match and give my …

How India’s Billie Jean King Cup Playoffs instilled purpose

How India’s Billie Jean King Cup Playoffs instilled purpose

Published by Webster

“We belong here.” Every Indian player that turned up at the press conference at Bengaluru during the Billie Jean King Cup Playoffs repeated that statement more than just once. It was almost a mantra that Vishal Uppal’s squad chanted before, during and after every match. The reiteration was understandable. After all, their presence in the playoff was only the second such instance in the history of the storied tournament that is often touted as the women’s world cup of tennis. Having battled their way through a competitive Asia-Oceania group earlier this year, they set out to make history with the odds stacked against them. While they did come up short and progression to the qualifiers will have to wait for another season, the exploits of the squad this year instilled belief that Indian women’s tennis is ready for the next big leap. The winning bid At the outset, India’s progression to the playoffs triggered several firsts: the possibility of hosting a playoff for the first time and thereafter, progressing to a first ever qualifiers. To …

The Netherlands sweep India 3–0 in the Billie Jean King Cup Play-offs in Bengaluru

The Netherlands sweep India 3–0 in the Billie Jean King Cup Play-offs in Bengaluru

Published by Webster

The Netherlands completed a commanding 3–0 victory over India on Sunday in the Billie Jean King Cup Play-offs, closing out the tie in clinical fashion at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium. In the opening singles rubber, Dutch player Koevermans produced a composed, high-energy performance to defeat India’s Shrivalli Bhamidipaty (World No. 381). Breaking early for a 2–1 lead, Koevermans controlled the tempo throughout the first set, winning it 6–2. Bhamidipaty mounted a brief fightback in the second, but the Dutch player maintained her momentum to secure a 6–2, 6–4 result. Sharing her approach, Koevermans said, “I wanted to run for every ball because it keeps me focused and forces my opponent to make more mistakes. It was important to stay in every point, and that’s what I did.” The second singles match saw World No. 89 Suzan Lamens overpower India’s top-ranked player Sahaja Yamalapalli (No. 309). Lamens dominated the first set 6–2 and, despite Yamalapalli leveling at 2–2 in the second after an early break, regained control with aggressive baseline play. She sealed a 6–2, …

Sahaja, Shrivalli exit; Indian singles campaign over

Sahaja, Shrivalli exit; Indian singles campaign over

Published by Webster

Indian young tennis stars Sahaja Yamalapalli and Shrivalli Bhamidipaty exited from the prequarterfinals of the 2025 WTA 250 Chennai Open on Thursday. Sahaja was outclassed by world no.78 Donna Vekic of Croatia, 2-6, 2-6. Meanwhile, Shrivalli was knocked out by 7th-seeded Kimberly Birell of Australia after a close fight, 5-7, 6-7. Two Sets of Multiple Breaks Shrivalli made an impressive comeback in the opening set from two breaks down at 1-5 to level the score at 5-5 by winning consecutive breaks against Birrell. But then Birrell found out another break in the 11th game and closed out the opening set with 7-5. This struggle of holding the serve continued in the second set as well, as there were as many as eight breaks in that set, with four each for both players. This resulted in a tied 6-6 set, inducing a tiebreak to decide the winner, where the experienced Australian got the better of Shrivalli by 6-2. With this, India’s campaign has also ended in the singles category of the 2025 WTA Chennai Open, which …

Shrivalli, Sahaja advance to prequarterfinals

Published by Webster

Indian stars Sahaja Yamalapalli and Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, reached the prequarterfinals of the 2025 WTA 250 Chennai Open on Wednesday. Sahaja got the better of Priska Nugroho of Indonesia, 6-4, 6-2; meanwhile, Shrivalli knocked out the fellow compatriot, 16-year-old Maaya Rajeshwaran, 6-1, 6-4. This was also the first time in 19 years that two Indians had reached the second round of a singles WTA Tour event since the 2006 Bengaluru Open. In an all-Indian clash, Shrivalli overpowered her younger compatriot in the opening set, winning it comfortably after converting two breaks. In the second set, both players faced difficulties holding serve, but Shrivalli ultimately won 6-4, securing one fewer break than Maya, who was broken three times. Shrivalli will now have a tougher task ahead as she will take on 7th-seeded Kimberly Birell of Australia in the second round on Thursday. On the other hand, Sahaja is taking on a top-100-ranked player in the second round, facing the third-seeded Donna Vekic of Croatia, who is ranked 78th in the world. India had a strong outing in …

How overtrained bodies and undercooked techniques derail India’s women’s tennis players

How overtrained bodies and undercooked techniques derail India’s women’s tennis players

Published by Parlour News

When Pranjala Yadlapalli won back-to-back ITF titles in Lagos in 2018, there was optimism in the air about Indian women’s tennis. “Just like Sania Mirza,” it was said, for twin titles in the Nigerian capital had heralded a steep rise in the legend’s success back in 2004. Backed by the same Hyderabad business conglomerate, Pranjala was poised for bigger things as she reached World No 265, before she slid down the familiar slope of injuries with very fragmented expertise available to her in how to deal with them at age 19. This last week at Pune’s Balewadi stadium, the Indian women’s team took another tiny step forward, making playoffs of the Billie Jean King Cup, led by Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, also a Hyderabadi. But that dreaded shadow of injuries derailing any career about to take off, still haunts Indian women. Ankita Raina, now 32, maxed out at World No 160 in singles after Mirza. But when current top player, Hyderabad’s Sahaja Yamalapalli cramped out and missed the next tie in punishing conditions, those old fears were …

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty – 38 aces in 5 matches, and first serve points won percentage of 77, as India make Billie Jean King Cup playoffs | Tennis News

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty – 38 aces in 5 matches, and first serve points won percentage of 77, as India make Billie Jean King Cup playoffs | Tennis News

Published by Webster

The Shrivalli Bhamidipaty big tennis serve continued to boom around Pune’s Mhalunge Balewadi stadium as India confidently strode into the playoffs of the Billie Jean King Cup, winning 4 of their 5 Asia Oceania ties. The 5’11” Hyderabadi though, won all her 5 matches, and wrapped up her debut campaign with 12 aces in the final match against Korean Sohyun Park, even as India won 2-1. In all she rattled off 38 aces, averaging 7.6 per match – an impressive tally, pointing to one of the most solid serves in Indian women’s tennis. Ankita Raina and Prarthana Thombare stepped up when it mattered most, helping the team over the line against Sohyun Park and Dabin Kim as India confirmed their playoff berth for only the second time. They last Made the cut in 2020. New Zealand lost to Hong Kong, but managed to qualify. Story continues below this ad But it was Shrivalli who notched 8 aces each against New Zealand and Hong Kong, 12 against Korea, 4 versus Thailand and 6 against Chinese Taipei. …

Indian women bow down to New Zealand in opener

Indian women bow down to New Zealand in opener

Published by Webster

The Indian women’s tennis team bowed down against New Zealand in the opening tie of the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup Asia/Oceania Group 1 at the Mslta School Of Tennis in Pune on Tuesday. The Indian team started the tie with a win in the first singles, but then they faced a defeat in the next two matches of the tie, conceding a 1-2 defeat against the New Zealand women’s team. This was India’s second consecutive defeat against New Zealand at the Billie Jean King Cup, as they faced the same 1-2 defeat at the last edition in 2024. 🚨 #News | 2025 Billie Jean King Cup 2025 | India go down fighting to New Zealand 🚨 👉Hosts 🇮🇳India were beaten 1-2 by 🇳🇿New Zealand at Pune.👉Shrivalli Rashmikaa Bhamidipati overpowered Das A in straight sets to put India ahead.👉New Zealand then drew square with Sun L… pic.twitter.com/O1XqLeOkv1 — The Bridge (@the_bridge_in) April 8, 2025 Lulu Sun’s heroics The 23-year-old Lulu Sun of New Zealand was the player of the match for her brilliant performance in …