Himanshu Mali Suraj Desai shocked

Mumbai, May 4 (UNI) Top seed Himanshu Mali of Maharashtra and second seed Suraj Desai of Gujarat crashed out in contrasting fashion on yet another dramatic day of upsets in the TCS-Bombay Gymkhana All India National Ranking Championship Series Junior Tennis Tournament here today.

While fourth seed Yash Deshmukh of Pune sailed into the boys final following a surprise 6-2, 6-2 win against mali, third seed Gaurav Walia endured a strong challenge from Desai before fashioning a 7-5, 0-6, 6-3 win in a semifinal clash that lasted 2 hours 15 minutes.

In the closest contest of the day, Walia dominated the opening set and earned a crucial break in the 11th game before holding serve for a 1-0 lead. But Desai showed his class in the second with a fluent display as he snatched the set to force the decider.

Desai set the stage for a cliff-hanger, but Walia came back to hold sway in the third set to pull off a surprise win.

In contrast, the top two seeds among the girls lived up to their reputations as No. 1 Shraddha Dali set up a title clash with No. 2 Sayali Bhilare of Pune.

Bhilare set herself up for a double when she partnered Pooja Patel to beat top seeds Shraddha Dali and Kahini Dalal 6-4, 6-4 for the girls doubles crown.

Results (Semi-finals): Boys: 4-Yash Deshmukh (Pune, Mah) bt 1-Himanshu Mali (Mah) 6-2, 6-2; 3-Gaurav Walia (Mah) bt 2-Suraj Desai (Guj) 7-5, 0-6, 6-3.

Doubles: Suraj Desai/Urvaksh Anklesaria bt R. Kotak/S. Gulgule 6-2, 6-2; Aroon Khattar/Yash Deshmukh bt Gurjot Marwah/G. Walia 6-3, 6-3.

Girls: 1-Shraddha Dali (Mah) bt Madhuri Patare (Mah) 6-1, 6-4; 2-Sayali Bhilare (Pune, Mah) bt Vaidehi Bhagwat (Mah) 6-3, 6-1.

Doubles (Final): 2-Sayali Bhilare/Pooja Patel bt 1-Kahini Dalal/Shraddha Dali 6-4, 6-4.

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