Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina lost 6-0, 6-7, 8-10 to the Kichenok sisters in the first round doubles match at the Tokyo Olympics.
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Indian women’s doubles pair of Sania Mirza and Ankita Raina lost to Ukrainian sisters Nadiia and Liudmyla Kichenok on Sunday. The match went down the wire with the Ukrainians winning 0-6, 7-6, (10-8 )in the tie-breaker. The Indians got off to a bright start, winning the first set without conceding a game. But their opponents came back to take a tight second set and then went on to win the match. Thus, the Indian duo are out of the Tokyo Olympics. (Tokyo Games full coverage)
Mirza and Raina started the serve and won the first game with ease. And in the second game the Indian pair hit some solid returns to extend the lead to 2-0.
The Indian’s showed full dominance to win the first set 6-0 committing only one unforced error. Meanwhile the Ukranian sisters looked frustrated.
India won their seventh set in a row before the Kichenok sisters showed some fighting spirit to win their first game in the match and make it 1-1 in the second set.
The third game was a close one but the Indians managed to take a 2-1 lead. But the Ukrainian’s hit back to level at 2-2.
Meanwhile the Indian’s then raced to a 5-2 lead and looked in a comfortable position before Ukrainian’s somehow managed to make a fight back.
The Kichenok sisters leveled the score at 5-5 and then won the second set and took the game to tie-breaker.
Meanwhile in the tie breaker the Ukrainian’s took a monumental 7-0 lead before the Indian pair surprisingly leveled the score at 8-8. But in the end Ukraine won the match 10-8.
The match was a topsy-turvy affair and the Indians would be really disappointed to lose the match from such a comfortable position.
After Sumit Nagal opened India’s campaign on the tennis court on the opening day of Tokyo 2020 with a victory, the women’s doubles pair couldn’t continue that momentum for team India.
