Stage is now set for the Team Championships
Bangalore, 8 August, 2012: Following their losses at the Gold and Red Division matches, the Indian team was part of the White Division draws on the penultimate day of the individual events of the World Racquetball Championships being held in Santo Domingo. The team came close to winning their matches before going down fighting to their more fancied opponents. Ashish Mehta started the proceedings for India in the White Division, putting up a tough fight against David Matamoros in the second set before eventually losing 15 – 6, 15 – 13 to his Honduran opponent.
In a tough match that went down to the wire, Venkat stretched his opponent Cesar Dominguez from Panama, but could not keep him from winning 15-14, 15-14. In the White Division Men’s Doubles draw, Nirup Shetty and captain Sathwik Rai faced an uphill battle against the Venezuelan duo of Luis Reveron and Roberto Santander. The Venezuelan pair prevailed with a margin of 15-4, 15-1.
Earlier in the tournament, in the Red Division matches held on 5th August, Ashish Mehta, played against 34th seed Abraham Mercado from Puerto Rico in the Men’s Singles. Ashish won the first set 15-12, but lost 15-12, 6-15, 9-11 in a keenly contested match.
In the other Men’s Singles match for India in the Red Division, Venkat Vejju faced a tough challenge from Guatemalan player Pedro Sandoval who went on to win the match 7-15, 4-15. In the final match for India on 5th August, captain Sathwik Rai along with Nirup Shetty took on Rolando Bier and David Matamoros from Honduras. The Honduran pair proved too tough for the Indians as they beat them 4-15, 3-15.
In the Individual Men’s Singles Championships that concluded on the 7th of August, Rocky Carson of USA won his third straight World Championships title beating Polo Gutierrez 15-6, 15-11. In the Men’s Doubles, Mexican team of Alvaro Beltran and Javier Moreno won the title with a 15-2, 15-7 win over Tony Carson and Jansen Allen of the United States of America.
With the conclusion of the Individual Championships, the Team Championships are slated to begin on the 9th of August, 2012, where each country will be playing two singles and one doubles match in every round. Venkat Vejju and Ashish Mehta will play the two singles matches for India while the duo of Nirup Shetty and captain Sathwik Rai are slated to represent the country in doubles. The Indian team, which won gold in the White Division at the 2010 World Racquetball Championships, is looking to make the country proud again.