CWG Tennis: Paes and Sania round off good day for India (Intro Roundup)

NEW DELHI - Leander Paes and Sania Mirza rounded off a successful opening day for India with a facile 6-1, 6-0 victory over Saint Lucia’s Stacey Nykita Roheman and Alberton Richelieu to enter the mixed doubles quarterfinals as tennis made its debut at the Commonwealth Games here Monday.

Rohan Bopanna kicked off the day with an emphatic 6-1, 6-4 victory over Uganda’s Robert Buyinza to sail into the last 16 of the men’s singles and Rushmi Charkravathi soon made it two in a row for India, dropping only one game in beating Pinki Agnes Montlha of Lesotho 6-0, 6-1.

Poojashree Venkatesha hardly broke a sweat during a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Lesotho’s Nthabiseng Eunicia Nqosa.

The only blemish in India’s campaign was the loss of Bopanna and Nirupama Sanjeev in the mixed doubles first round to top seeds Paul Hanley and Anastasia Rodionova of Australia 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, though not before giving them a fright.

Second seeds Sania and Paes, who won gold in the 2006 Doha Asian Games, were excited to team up after four years.

“It was a good warm up. We are playing together after four years, so we are quite excited. It is only going to get tougher from here on,” Paes said.

It was a busy day for Bopanna, who was back in the court guiding an initially nervy Nirupama. After being outclassed in the first set, the Indian pair shifted gear in the second with Bopanna taking charge at the net.

They, however, failed to carry the momentum in the decider, allowing the Australians to scrape through after a nearly two-hour-struggle.

Hanley and Rodionova covered the courts well and came up with some stunning returns but struggled with their first serves, sharing seven double-faults.

Thirty-three years old Nirupama, who is a mother of a four-year-old daughter, made a comeback last year after a seven-year break and the rustiness reflected in her game. Nirupama’s movements were sluggish and she was often left stranded while the balls whizzed past her. She, however, mixed her serve well, though it lacked the sting and pace for slow courts.

“I did struggle with my serve initially. But it was more because of nerves and not because I was not feeling the ball.”

However, Nirupama is still in the contention in the women’s doubles where she plays with young Poojashree Venkatesha.

Despite the scorching heat resulting in one of the spectators fainting in the stands, there was a sizeable crowd at the showcourt at the R.K. Khanna Tennis Stadium for the mixed doubles match. The crowd livened up the atmosphere with their “C’mon India”, “C’mon Bopanna and Niru” chants and with frequent applause whenever the Indians lagged behind.