Sai upsets Aureli to enter ITF semis

New Delhi:

Sai Jayalakshmy upset second seed Aureli Vedy of France to enter the singles semifinals of the USD 10,000 ITF women's tennis event in New Delhi today. Sai defeated Aureli 4-6 6-4 6-4 to set up a 'battle of the ages' with compatriot Ankita Bhambri at the DLTA Complex. Top seed Rushmi Chakravarthy had a smooth sailing against Gabriela Velasco of Spain 7-6 (3) 6-1 and will take on third seed Montinee Thangpong of Thailand in the other semifinal. Damp squib The sibling rivalry between Ankita and Sanaa turned out to be a damp squib as the latter retired after the first set with a leg injury. Sanaa, the younger sister, was leading 5-2 but the leg pain began to hamper her and she lost the set 6-7 (1). In another quarterfinal, Thangpong defeated Wilawan Choptang 6-2 7-6 (9). Sai and Aureli were engaged in a see-saw battle for more than two hours before the Indian made a bold comeback to prove her worth after her first round exit last week. The French girl faced two set points in the 10th game of the second set. She held her nerves to save the first but her resistance was broken on the next as Sai took the second set. In the decider, Sai raised her game a notch and broke Aureli again in the 10th game to the win the set and match.(PTI)