Indian Tennis Players Face Early Exits in Perth

Perth, Australia – Indian tennis players faced a challenging start at the ITF W75 Perth International event, with both Ankita Raina and Shrivalli Bhamidipaty bowing out in the opening rounds of their respective singles and doubles matches.

Ankita Raina, recently dethroned as India’s No. 1 by Sahaja Yamalapalli, fell to Japan’s Ayano Shimizu in straight sets, 3-6, 2-6. Raina, currently ranked 283 in the world, struggled to find her rhythm against the 335th-ranked Shimizu.

Ankita Raina will shift her focus to the doubles event, where she will team up with former Wimbledon doubles quarterfinalist Naiktha Bains, who is of Indian origin. The pair will hope to make a deeper run in the tournament.

Photos by Jacob Steber – Tennis West

Meanwhile, young upcomer Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, partnering with Japan’s Haruna Arakawa, faced a tough challenge in the doubles event. The duo lost to the Australian pair of Talia Gibson and Maddison Inglis, 1-6, 6-7, in a closely contested match.

Bhamidipaty will look to bounce back in her singles match against Australia’s Stefani Webb, ranked 967, tomorrow.