Sweet revenge for Tushar

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE, SEPT. 1. Tushar Liberhan is riding high this season. The 15- year-old youngster from Chandigarh has maintained an almost unbeaten run in the under-16 ranks and Tushar underlined his consistency with his third AITA ranking title of the season, claiming the boys' under-16 singles crown in the Maqintosh-AITA sub-junior ranking tennis championship which concluded at KIMS Academy courts here today.

In an absorbing final, at least it was in the first set, Tushar avenged the defeat he suffered at the hands of Aditya Medkekar in the National sub-junior championship early this year. He defeated Medkekar 7-6 (14-12), 6-0 in 90 minutes and the match, which was advanced to the morning session so that Tushar could catch an evening flight to New Delhi, had the signs of becoming a marathon affair before fizzling out on a tame note.

Tushar plays with a lot of power, pace and poise, but Medkekar matched him stride for stride, playing an aggressive game. But Tushar was more consistent. For Aditya, who played a very tight first set, it was a disappointing end. But he said his movements had been hampered by a nagging back pain, which has troubled him right through the tournament. ``I did my best in the first set, but in the second, I could hardly move,'' said Medkekar, who made his third AITA-ranking final, again drawing a blank.

The first set saw a keen contest with both trading breaks in the first two games, but Tushar broke his rival again in the fourth game for a 3-1 lead. But Medkekar kept pounding solidly from the baseline on both flanks and put Tushar under pressure, and cracked him in the eighth game. The two again exchanged breaks for the next two games, which finally pushed the set into a tie- breaker. That too proved to be a prolonged one before, at 12-all, Tushar slammed a cross court volley winner and then sealed the set with Medkekar netting a forehand.

Medkekar seemed to have lost heart and hope in the second set as he just went through the motions. Tushar charged to a 4-0 lead and never looked back as he wrapped up the set and title without dropping a game.

``I was doing well in the first before losing control with some bad shots, but I am glad that I pulled through. I am looking forward to a good show in the next tournament which is an ITF under-18 championship,'' said Tushar.

Madhura at the receiving end again

For the 13-year-old Kartiki Bhat of Pune it was once again a double delight. Close on the heels of her twin triumph at the Adidas championship here last week, Kartiki once again reigned supreme in the girls' section, winning both the girls' under-14 and under-16 titles.

Her victim on both occasions was Madhura Ranganathan of Tamil Nadu. Kartiki blasted her rival 6-1, 6-0 to claim the under-14 title in the morning session. The two clashed again in the under- 16 final in the afternoon. But Kartiki this time had to sweat it out for a 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) win.

Madhura, daughter of noted former Coimbatore player and coach R. Elango, put up a spirited fight in the second set. After her rival broke her in the fourth and eighth games for a 5- 3 lead, Madhura struck back in the fifth and ninth games to level the score and push it into a tie-breaker. Kartiki scraped through the tie-breaker at 7-5 after Madhura rallied from a 0-4 deficit.

``It is great to win four titles back to back in a span of two weeks. I hope to fare well in the ITF junior tournament, which I am playing next,'' said an elated Kartiki, who has been touring the circuit like a seasoned pro.

S. Prateek of Karnataka, who shed tears of despair after his bitter loss to the top seed Rupesh Roy in the Adidas under-14 final last week, had a joyous grin plastered across his face today. The 13-year-old Mysorean beat Hrishikesh Patasker of Maharashtra 6-1, 6-2 in the boys' under-14 final.

Mr. Neelkant Rao Jagdale, Managing Director of Amrut Distilleries, which sponsored the tournament under its brand name Maqintosh, and Mr. C.S. Sunder Raju, the KSLTA secretary, presided and gave away the prizes. Mr. Shashikanth Kanbargimath, the Director of the KIMS Tennis Academy, which conducted the tournament, welcomed the gathering.

The hard-working Shashi had reason to smile at the end of the day as Mr. Jagdale, announced that his Group would sponsor this AITA ranked event for the next few years.

lThe results (all finals - prefix indicates seeding):

Boys' under-16 singles: 1-Tushar Liberhan (Chd) bt 5-Aditya Medkekar (Mah) 7-6 (14-12), 6-0.

Under-14 singles: 10-S. Prateek (Kar) bt 7-Hrishikesh Patasker (Mah) 6-1, 6-2.

Girls' under-16 singles: 4-Kartiki Bhat (Mah) bt Madhura Ranganathan (TN) 6-3, 7-6 (7-5).

Under-14 singles: 1-Kartiki Bhat bt Madhura Ranganathan 6-1, 6-0.

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