Wimbledon 2018 | Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan qualifies for main draw, Ankita Raina misses out

The results in the final round of the Wimbledon qualifiers in London have shed some light on any Indian involvement in the prestigious event which will begin in next week. Indian tennis ace Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan ensured that he would make his second appearance in the main draw at a Grand Slam. Jeevan, along with American partner Austin Krajicek managed to beat local players Edward Corrie and Lloyd Glasspool 7-6(5), 6-3 in the finals of the qualifying event to seal a spot in the main draw. Jeevan had played in Wimbledon last year with Jared Donaldson but lost a tough five-setter against Jay Clarke and Marcus Willis.

“We played a solid match from the beginning, we kept the rhythm going on our serves. There was lot of energy from the crowd. We held serves and played with lead, played a very good tie-breaker. The key was taking care of our serves because we both were feeling great on returns,” Jeevan told PTI from London.

In other news, Indian women’s singles player - Ankita Raina faced a disappointing defeat at the hands of Russian world No 132 Vitalia Diatchenko in the second round of the qualifiers in London. Raina put up a brave two hour and 23 minute battle but ultimately succumbed to a superior Vitalia. This meant that Sania Mirza’s 2012 appearance at the Australian Open was the last by an Indian woman in the Singles event at a Grand Slam.

Also, Indian duo of Vishnu Vardhan and N Sriram Balaji booked their berth in the men’s doubles draw following a 6-3, 6-4 win over top seeds Denys Molchanov and Igor Zelenay in the second round of the qualifiers. The Indian pair will make their debut appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam.