Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Apr 9: India staged a strong comeback in the Billie Jean King Cup Asia/Oceania Group I, blanking New Zealand 3-0 in their second tie on Wednesday, riding on impressive performances from debutant Vaishnavi Adkar and Sahaja Yamalapalli.

After suffering a narrow 1-2 defeat to Thailand in their rain-hit opener, the hosts responded in style, with both singles players delivering composed performances under pressure.

Vaishnavi, playing her maiden match in the tournament, displayed significant improvement to defeat Aishi Das 6-2, 6-4. She capitalised on her opponent’s inconsistency and held her nerve in crucial moments to seal the match in one hour and 30 minutes.

Sahaja then produced a dominant display to outclass Valentina Ivanov 6-1, 6-3, keeping India’s campaign on track. Her aggressive baseline play and consistency proved decisive as she controlled the match throughout.

In the doubles, the experienced pair of Rutuja Bhosale and Ankita Raina completed the rout with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Erin Routliffe and Monique Barry.

Speaking after the match, Vaishnavi admitted to nerves in her debut outing but said she focused on playing her natural game this time. Sahaja, meanwhile, said the team was determined to bounce back after the disappointing loss to Thailand.

India had earlier gone down 1-2 to Thailand, with Sahaja losing a closely fought singles match and Vaishnavi faltering on debut. However, the emphatic victory over New Zealand has revived India’s chances in the tournament.