Sutirtha-Ayhika: A chemistry brewing in TT doubles
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A primary World Desk Tennis (WTT) Contender title for Indian desk tennis this 12 months might have come from surprising quarters, however Sutirtha Mukherjee and Ayhika Mukherjee had been hardly quick on perception whereas scripting one upset after one other in Tunis. 
It wasn’t utterly out of the blue although. Teaming up and taking part in doubles a bit extra often on the WTT tour final 12 months, the pair made the ultimate of the 2022 WTT Contender Muscat in February-March — they went previous the top-seeded Diaz sisters of Puerto Rico — after only one match collectively.
If that was a bit of sneak peek, final week was a surprising giant-killing present from the Indians in beating the world No. 4 Korean pair of Jeon Jihee and Shin Yubin within the semi-final and the Japanese teenaged duo of Miwa Harimoto and Miyuu Kihara within the closing on Sunday.
“We had been overjoyed after successful," Ayhika mentioned. “We had the idea that we will go all the way in which. We began taking part in doubles in tournaments correctly solely from final 12 months, and it took us one match to get into the highest 50 (girls’s doubles rankings). We knew that we're an efficient pair and if we play extra collectively, we may make a distinction.”
At present ranked thirty sixth on the earth, the Tunis title is predicted to extend their mixed rankings. Although the second-best girls’s doubles pair within the nation — which clinched the 2022 Nationwide Video games title — Sutirtha and Ayhika weren't chosen in India's doubles line-up for the 2022 Commonwealth Video games or the World Desk Tennis Championships in Durban final month, the place the mix of Manika Batra-Archana Kamath and Sreeja Akula-Diya Chitale was fielded. Sutirtha did, nonetheless, compete in singles on the Worlds.
It will likely be attention-grabbing to see which of those gamers will get the nod within the girls’s squad for the Asian Video games in September-October as per Desk Tennis Federation of India’s (TTFI) choice coverage. In response to the factors, 50% weightage is given to nationwide efficiency, 40% to worldwide efficiency and 10% to the choice committee's judgement. As issues stand, Sutirtha and Ayhika are ranked above Diya and Sreeja (58th) on the earth chart with a WTT title to indicate. Domestically, as per TTFI's 2022 rankings for girls headed by Sreeja, Sutirtha is No. 2 whereas Ayhika is No. 5. Manika and Archana, although ranked thirteenth on the earth as a pair, are thirty first and eleventh respectively within the particular person nationwide chart.
TTFI secretary-general Kamlesh Mehta mentioned the choice name on Asian Video games will probably be accomplished “within the subsequent few days”.
The previous stalwart labelled the title received by Sutirtha-Ayhika as a “incredible achievement”. “It is a new pair, and the outcomes are very encouraging," Mehta mentioned. “That they received towards the Korean and Japanese pairs, that are historically very robust in doubles, is nice. Our doubles total has proven some good indicators.”
From the identical metropolis of Naihati in West Bengal and with the identical surnames, Sutirtha and Ayhika have much more in frequent. They got here from the identical academy of their youthful days, and now prepare with Soumyadeep Roy and Poulomi Ghatak at their centre. The on-table chemistry, due to this fact, didn't take too lengthy to brew.
“We're like sisters off the desk,” Ayhika mentioned. “We have now been taking part in collectively since childhood and so we all know one another very properly and may learn one another's minds whereas taking part in. Our bonding is tremendous robust.”
Ayhika, 26, has additionally made regular progress in singles. On the Jammu nationals in March this 12 months, she reached the semi-finals the place, by the way, she misplaced to Sutirtha. On the UTT Nationwide Rating Championships earlier this month, she received the singles title beating Diya within the closing. Ayhika acquired previous younger Diya once more within the Tunis qualifying spherical earlier than beating China's Wang Xiaotong within the Spherical of 32. Larger outcomes although awaited in doubles.
“I performed fairly good in singles as properly however to win my first WTT title in doubles, I'm actually comfortable,” she mentioned, including that they may play two extra WTT occasions in Europe. “It would increase our rankings and confidence going ahead.”
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