Saketh loses US Open match after though fight
New York, Aug. 30: Qualifier Saketh Myneni gave a mighty scare to world number 49 Jiri Veseley before limping out of the US Open with cramps that scuttled his victory march, here.
Myneni, ranked 143, had a match point in the eighth game of the fifth set but stiffness in the right thigh restricted his movement badly and he was forced out 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-2, 2-6, 5-7 after battling hard for three hours and 47 minutes in a marathon first round match.
His first ever appearance in the singles draw of a Grand Slam thus ended in disappointment. Myneni was clearly a better player on the court but for fitness issues he lost a chance to play Novak Djokovic in the second round.
It brought back memories of the Davis Cup tie against Korea last month in Chandigarh, where similar scenes were witnessed as both the Indian and the Koreans struggled to stand on court due to humid conditions.
After splitting four sets, Myneni broke the Czech in the fourth game to take a crucial 3-1 lead and led 4-2 in the fifth set. The match changed at that stage as Myneni took a medical time out due to an issue in his right thigh but managed to hold for a 5-2 cushion.
From a commanding position, Myneni lost grip over the match and surrendered serve twice as he hardly had the strength to stand.
An error-prone Vesely kept the hopes of the Indian alive but Myneni was now limping, barely managing to stay on court.
Vesely just needed to keep the ball in play to close out the contest.
“I competed hard till the end and happy with my progress at the Open. I loved every bit of support I got from my family, friends and the Greenwich family,” Saketh said after the match.
Meanwhile, the All India Tennis Association selection committee headed by S.P. Misra, retained all four playing members of the squad that beat Korea Korea 4-1 last month, for the Davis Cup World Group Play-off tie against Spain, scheduled for September 16-18.
Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan are scheduled to the singles duty. The panel also retained the doubles pairing of Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna.
I competed hard till the end and happy with my progress at the Open. I loved every bit of support I got from my family, friends and the Greenwich family.
— SAKETH MYNENI