Somdev Devvarman was the main protagonist in a stunning tale of success as Indian tennis savoured some great and rare moments in 2009, a year which promised to change the face of the game in the country. From junior stage to the highest level of the game, India had its moments of ecstasy and exultation as as Somdev, Sania Mirza, Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupathi and teenager Yuki Bhambri all contributed to the success story.
Last year's finalist Somdev Devvarman and Rohan Bopanna have got wild cards for the singles main draw of the Chennai Open next month, the organisers announced on Monday.
Earlier, compatriots Yuki Bhambri and Somdev Devvarman had also crashed out of the premier grass-court championship.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Tuesday
India's new hero Somdev Devvarman climbed up two places to 131 in the latest ATP rankings while Sania Mirza dropped two spots to 65 in the WTA list.
Top seed Yuki Bhambri's title hopes went up in smoke after a stunning straight-set defeat to unseeded local favourite Chase Buchanan in the boys' singles quarterfinal of the US Open.
Bidding for his second Grand Slam title of the year, India's Yuki Bhambri stormed into the boys' singles quarter-finals of the junior US Open in New York on Thursday. Yuki edged past local lad Jack Sock 6-4, 6-3 in the third round.
Reigning Australian Open boys' champion Yuki Bhambri has pulled out of the French Open due to the ankle injury he sustained while playing doubles in an ITF Futures event in Kuwait last week. Yuki, who became the first Indian to win the Australian Open boys' singles and fourth from the country to claim a junior Grand Slam, said he had been advised by doctors to take rest for at least 15 days to recover from his injury.
Sania Mirza and Yuki Bhambri were beaten by France's Mathilde Johansson and Argrntina's Diego Junqueira in first round matches at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on Wednesday.
The fourth Indian to win a junior Grand Slam title and the first to do it at the Australian Open, Yuki Bhambri on Saturday said he would now focus on graduating to the men's circuit. The triumph put the Delhi-lad in a long list of former Australian Open junior champions who have made it big in the men's circuit including Andy Roddick, Marcos Baghdatis and Gael Monfils.
Three Indians, including top seed Rohan Bopanna, stormed into the singles semifinals of the $ 10,000 India F5 Futures ITF Men's Circuit being played at the CLTA Stadium in Chandigarh on Thursday.
Indian junior team finished fourth in the Junior Davis Cup competition after losing 1-2 to Russia in the World Finals in Mexico.
Indian team's hopes of annexing its first junior Davis Cup title win went up in smoke after it was blanked 0-3 by the United States in the semifinals.
The All India Tennis Association may be backing Leander Paes to the hilt in him making the squad for the Rio Olympics, but the veteran star will not be picked in the Davis Cup team despite showing late interest in competing in the Asia/Oceania Group I tie against Korea Republic next month.
India stormed into the final of Junior Davis Cup's World Group playoff after stunning top seeds Australia 3-0 in New Delhi on Friday.
India's Ankita Raina crashed out of the the French Open qualifiers with a 3-6, 6-7 defeat at the hands of Evgeniya Rodina of Russia in the women's singles first round in Paris.
India's Rohan Bopanna on Monday jumped four places to 12th in the latest doubles ranking chart. The soar in rankings was courtesy his title victory at the ATP Dubai 500 event.
Rohan Gajjar and Purav Raja advanced to the doubles second round of the USD 10,000 ITF tennis event after registering a comfortable straight sets victory at the CLTA stadium on Monday. The third-seeded pair beat Vijayant Malik and Yannick Nelord 6-4, 6-2 in the first round match.
Yuki Bhambri breezed past Italy's Marco Cecchinato in the opening round of the qualifiers in the Chennai Open on Saturday.
Delhi's Yuki Bhambri reached the boys' semi-final of the Australian Open on his maiden Grand Slam appearance.
Prakash Amritraj and national champion Vishnu Vardhan were awarded wildcards for the 2008 Chennai Open.
India's Sania Mirza continued to stay on top of the WTA women's doubles ranking following her recent victory in the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
Apollo Tyres Ltd on Tuesday signed up the doubles team of India's Mahesh Bhupathi and Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic for the ATP and Gland Slam tours of 2007.
Karan Rastogi was 6-5, 5-7, 1-3 down against Purav Raja when he suffered cramps and had to quit in the qualifying round at the ATP Mumbai Open.
Delhi-lad Yuki Bhambri set up a second-round clash with top seed Aqeel Khan of Pakistan after an easy first-round victory at the ITF tournament in Delhi.
Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi rallied to beat the Canadian duo of Aleksandra Wozniak and Daniel Nestor and seal a semi-final berth in the mixed doubles event at the Australian Open in Melbourne on Wednesday. The unseeded Indian pair overcame a first-set lapse to carve out a 3-6, 6-4, 10-5 win in one hour and 15 minutes.
Agnel Gladwin, Yuki Bhambri, G K Shwetha and Nandita Krishnan will represent India at the tournament in South Africa.
Reaping rewards of his consistent performance, Prajnesh Gunneswaran, on Monday, broke into men's singles top-100 for the first time in his career with a jump of six places that took him to 97.
Delhi teenager Yuki Bhambri pulled off a major upset at $ 10,000 ITF men's event by defeating Chinese Davis Cupper Peng Sun in straight sets to storm into the singles quarterfinals in Chandigarh on Wednesday.
It was a bad day for Indians at the $ 10,000 ITF men's event as all of them bowed out of the singles event after losing their second round matches.
India's big hope Yuki Bhambri crashed out of the US Open men's singles qualifiers with a three-set defeat to Japanese Go Soeda while Prajnesh Gunneswaran also suffered a tame defeat in New York.
Marin Cilic completed a dream week by steering Croatia into the Davis Cup World Group on Sunday but Spain found themselves out in the wilderness after crashing to defeat in Brazil.
Saketh Myneni got himself in line for two gold medals by reaching the finals of both men's doubles and mixed doubles events even as other Indian tennis players, including Sania Mirza, clinched three bronze at the Asian Games in Incheon on Sunday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
Sania Mirza has enjoyed a dream run in the history Indian tennis this year. With two Grand Slam titles, 10 ATP crowns, in the WTA rankings, the Hyderabadi star continues to be World No 1.
India's top singles player Somdev Devvarman returned to top-100 after nearly two years as he jumped three places to 98 in the latest ATP singles rankings, issued on Monday.
Senior pro Leander Paes's place in the Indian Davis Cup team will be up for discussion when the AITA Selection Committee meets on Monday to pick the squad for the upcoming Asia/Oceania Zone tie against Uzbekistan.
Saketh Myneni and Yuki Bhambri registered dominating straight-set victories as India completed a 5-0 rout of Chinese Taipei in the first round Asia/Oceania Group I Davis Cup tie in Indore on Sunday.
At one stage Yuki was a break up, serving for the opening set but lost his serve and eventually the set. After drawing parity, Yuki twice lost his serve to fall behind 0-3 in the decisive set and never recovered.
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