Four-time national champion Prerna Bhambri overcame hiccups to outwit top seed Sai Samhitha 6-4, 7-5 in the semifinals of the Asian Tour women’s tennis tournament here on Saturday.
Sai made a slow start, losing serve early and was trying to catch up with Prerna. However, in the second set, in which she jumped to a 4-0 lead, after having lost the first set, Sai was unable to drive home the advantage.
In their only meeting in the international circuit in 2017, Sai had beaten Prerna in three sets, but today she missed the key points.
In the final, Prerna will play second seed Vaidehi Chaudhari who went about her task with grit, and overcame tricky player Yubarani Banerjee 6-1, 3-6, 6-1.
After dropping a token game in each of the first two rounds, Vaidehi has been battling tough opponents in Akanksha Nitture and Yubarani Banerjee in the last two rounds, which has prepared her nicely for the final.
It will be interesting to see how well Vaidehi tackles Prerna, who has virtually been unbeatable on Court No.1 for the Indian players.
The results (semifinals): Prerna Bhambri bt Sai Samhitha 6-4, 7-5; Vaidehi Chaudhari bt Yubarani Banerjee 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 .
