Indian tennis team wins 2-1 against Thailand

The Indian women’s tennis team opened its account in the Billie Jean King Cup 2025 Asia-Oceania Group 1 campaign with a 2-1 win against Thailand at the Mahalunge Balewadi Tennis Complex in Pune on Wednesday.

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty set the tone for India with an emphatic win before the experienced duo of Ankita Raina and Prarthana Thombare helped the hosts win their first match in the 2025 Billie Jean King Cup.

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, 345th in the WTA Rankings, picked up where she left off on day one, delivering another commanding performance against Thailand’s Lanlana Tararudee.

Playing only her second game in Indian colours, she brushed aside her opponent in an hour and 15 minutes, displaying an array of strokes to win 6-2, 6-4 and give India a 1-0 lead in the tie against Thailand.

The second game of the day saw Sahaja Yamalapalli take on Mananchaya Sawangkaew, in what proved to be a nail-biting contest.

The two players went toe-to-toe, putting some exceptional tennis on display. Mananchaya sealed a comeback win to seal the first set 6-3 before Sahaja fought back to take the second set 7-6 [7-3].

While trailing 0-1 in the final set, the Indian tennis player had to retire hurt, closing the curtains on a thrilling encounter after 2 hours and 23 minutes with the tie now level between the two countries at 1-1.

With all to play for in the doubles game that was the decider, the experienced Indian duo of Ankita Raina and Prarthana Thombare got the better of Peangtarn Plipuech and Patcharin Cheapchandej from Thailand.

The Indians bagged the first set before faltering in the second. However, they came in clutch with a resounding performance in the tie-break, sealing a victory in the super tie-break with a scoreline of 7-6, 3-6, 10-3 in an hour and 55 minutes.

India will face Hong Kong China in their next Billie Jean King Cup 2025 tie on Thursday.

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