Wishaya keeps Kingdom’s hopes alive after Jirat’s defeat
>> All eyes will be on experienced twins Sonchat and Sanchai Ratiwatana and Wishaya Trongcharoenchaikul to tip the balance in Thailand’s favour on the final day of their Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group 2 first round battle with Sri Lanka in Colombo today.
The two sides were tied 1-1 at the end of the first day yesterday.
Thailand, who have won all of their previous seven Davis Cup encounters with Sri Lanka, were precariously placed after their No.2 player Jirat Navasirisomboon went down 6-4, 7-5 to Sri Lanka’s top-ranked player Sharmal Dissanayake in the first rubber.
However, Thailand No.1 Wishaya, who is ranked 458th in the world, made amends with a straight-set victory over second-ranked Sri Lankan Yasitha de Silva, winning the match 6-3, 6-3.
Wishaya said after his convincing triumph: “I played my own game and was able to exploit my opponent’s weak points.
“Although I played the second match and we were 1-0 down, it did not put me under any pressure.”
Thai team captain Weerapat Dokmaiklee said: “We are tied 1-1, but the situation of our team is still good.
“I think we are still the favourites as we have a very strong doubles pair in Sonchat and Sanchai, and Wishaya is also playing well.”
In the doubles match, Sonchat and Sanchai will take on Sri Lanka’s Sankha Atukorale and Alex Fairbanks.
In the reverse singles, Wishaya is scheduled to meet Dissanayake, while Jirat faces de Silva.