Mumbai Open: Rajeshwaran advances to semi-final, Thombare confirms doubles finals spot

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 7 (ANI): One of the brightest spots in Indian tennis currently, 15-year-old Maaya Rajeshwaran continued her brilliant form, and dream run of results, as she progressed to the semi-final of the Mumbai Open WTA 125 Series, in Mumbai, on Friday, at the iconic Cricket Club of India.
Hailing from Coimbatore, and trained by R Manoj Kumar served up quite the performance in front of a packed house, as she saw off the challenge from Mei Yamaguchi in the Quarter-final with a scoreline of 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, a Mumbai Open release said.
Maaya's win means she is now the only Indian to still be in contention for the top prize in the singles draw at the ongoing Mumbai Open WTA 125 Series. Maaya will now take on Jil Teichmann in the semi-final on Saturday.
Maaya had a rocky start, trailing 1-3 after four games played in the first set. But, she made an incredible comeback and won the last three games on the trot to claim the first set 6-4. The second set saw Mei Yamaguchi fight hard for every point in an extremely tight contest. The score was 3-3 after which the Japanese moved through the gears quickly, to bring the contest to level pegging.
Mei continued her winning ways in the first game of the final set but the narrative and momentum changed quite quickly. Maaya stunned her opponent winning the next five games on the bounce to take a commanding lead. Maaya scored five aces and saved seven of her 12 break points during the course of three sets. Her cross shots and swift movement on the baseline stood out as she clinched the game after winning the final set 6-2.
India's Shrivalli Bhamidipaty was up against Jil Teichmann in her quarter-final in the afternoon. Shrivalli, who had been playing well through the week, looked to use the big serve to her advantage once again, but the Swiss kept countering her. Teichmann, who was seeded fifth for the tournament, won the first set at 6-2.
It was more of the same in the second set, as Shrivalli found it tough to break down her opponent. Teichmann serve was causing the Indian a fair amount of trouble throughout the game. The former WTA number 21 cruised through the second set, winning it 6-2, to close out the match and seal a semi-final berth.
In doubles draw, it was a mixed bag of results for India, as Prarthana Thombare and Arianne Hartono defeated Eden Silva and Anastasia Tikhonova 2-6, 6-4, 10-2 in the semi-final, and qualified for the final of the Mumbai Open 2025 WTA 125 for the second year running.
Eden and Anastasia started the match strong and won back-to-back games to win the first set 6-2. However, Prarthana and Arianne fought back to tie the game, winning the second set 6-4. Prarthana's decisive net play was crucial as they won much-needed points and capitalised on their opposition's errors.
By the time the tie-breaker came around, Eden and Anastasia started to feel the effects of the warm afternoon, and the Indo-Dutch duo promptly took advantage, closing out the set with a score of 10-2.
Meanwhile, it was a tough day at the office for Rutuja Bhosale and Alicia Barnett, who were outplayed by the second seeds Elena Pridankina and Amina Anshba 4-6, 3-6 in the doubles quarter-final. Rutuja and Alicia had a promising start to the match, leading the first set after five games. It was 4-4 by the eighth game but Elena and Abina bagged the last two games to win the first set. They took a defensive approach with both players sticking to the baseline and ensuring they don't give away easy points. Despite Rutuja's valiant efforts, she and Alicia couldn't trouble the pairing of Elena and Abina, who closed out the set at 6-3 and booked a semi-final berth.
In another clash between the Indians and the Italians, the latter prevailed in the doubles quarterfinal as Camilla Rosatello and Nicole Fossa Huergo beat Shrivalli Rashmikaa Bhamidipaty and Riya Bhatia 6-3, 6-3 to progress to the semi-finals. (ANI)