New Delhi, April 11 (IANS) New Zealand’s Aishi Das admitted she “made it tough” for herself against India’s Vaishnavi Adkar, while drawing confidence from her ability to stay competitive despite not being at her best during their Billie Jean King Cup Asia/Oceania Group I clash earlier this week.

In the tie held at the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association Complex on Wednesday, Adkar, making her second appearance in the competition, registered a 6-2, 6-4 win to set the tone for India’s comeback victory over New Zealand.

The 21-year-old Indian started strongly, racing to a 2-0 lead in the opening set with an early break and tightening her grip with another in the fifth game to close it out comfortably. She carried the momentum into the second set, once again striking early before Aishi mounted a brief fightback to level at 4-4. Adkar, however, raised her level at the crucial juncture to seal the match in straight sets.

Reflecting on the contest, Aishi said sticking to her routines helped her stay in the match despite the early deficit.

“I just try to focus on my routines and stuff, and they usually help. I try to stay consistent with my game style, and having a coach on the sideline really helps with that. I think that was the only reason why I was able to at least give myself a chance. Focusing on my routines and just trying to keep chipping away at it, just giving it my best. And then hopefully, towards the end, I start playing a little bit better. She was playing really well, so I made it tough for myself,” Aishi told IANS.

Aishi also spoke about the added responsibility of representing New Zealand on the international stage, saying the team environment helped her manage expectations.

“I think always playing for your country is going to have a little bit of pressure. I think having a team environment with that also helped a lot, especially me this week. Just knowing that they’re on the sidelines, cheering me on, is really helpful. But again, I think, at least for me, when I step out, it’s not something that I’m really thinking about. But yeah, like I said, focusing on my routines and just trying to stick to what I’m good at, and leaning in towards that helped a lot,” she said.

Despite the straight-sets loss, the Indian-origin player took positives from her ability to stay in contention against a confident opponent who had bounced back strongly after an opening-day defeat.

“Yeah, her being such a highly developed player, for me, I don’t really think I was playing that well. And just knowing that even then, I was able to stay with her, I think helped me a lot with my confidence a little bit. Just knowing that even though I wasn’t playing very well, I was still able to give myself a chance and made it close. But yeah, playing with her, playing against her, I knew that I had to do something different because the first set finished in like 20 minutes, so I kind of had to change something,” Aishi stated.

Looking ahead, Aishi emphasised that her immediate focus remains on gaining experience and improving her ranking as she transitions into the senior circuit.

“I wouldn’t say I have a set goal, I think I’ve kind of just now transitioned into the senior level. So it’s mostly just getting in a lot of tournaments and just trying to raise my ranking as much as possible. I go to uni in August, so it’s just going to be playing as many tournaments as I can until then. So I don’t really have a set number, but just improve my ranking as much as possible. Do you see yourself focusing more on singles, doubles or both as you progress? A little bit of both. I think probably will be more leaning towards singles, but still going to be playing doubles and everything. Yeah, just focusing on both, I guess,” she noted.

The contest against Vaishnavi Adkar was a tough one for you, but the early momentum went in India’s favor. How do you usually stay focused and try to turn the match around when things don’t start in your favor?

“I just try to focus on my routines and stuff, and they usually help. I try to stay consistent with my game style, and having a coach on the sideline really helps with that. I think that was the only reason why I was able to at least give myself a chance. Focusing on my routines and just trying to keep chipping away at it, just giving it my best. And then hopefully, towards the end, I start playing a little bit better. She was playing really well, so I made it tough for myself.”

Representing New Zealand at a prestigious event like the Billie Jean King Cup comes with pressure. How do you balance your team expectations with your personal goals on the court?

“I think always playing for your country is going to have a little bit of pressure. I think having a team environment with that also helped a lot, especially me this week. Just knowing that they’re on the sidelines, cheering me on, is really helpful. But again, I think, at least for me, when I step out, it’s not something that I’m really thinking about. But yeah, like I said, focusing on my routines and just trying to stick to what I’m good at, and leaning in towards that helped a lot.”

You faced someone like Vaishnavi, who bounced back very strongly after her first loss. What did you take away from that match that could help you in your future encounters?

“Yeah, her being such a highly developed player, for me, I don’t really think I was playing that well. And just knowing that even then, I was able to stay with her, I think helped me a lot with my confidence a little bit. Just knowing that even though I wasn’t playing very well, I was still able to give myself a chance and made it close. But yeah, playing with her, playing against her, I knew that I had to do something different because the first set finished in like 20 minutes, so I kind of had to change something.”

At this stage of your career, what are your immediate goals for international tennis?

“I wouldn’t say I have a set goal, I think I’ve kind of just now transitioned into the senior level. So it’s mostly just getting in a lot of tournaments and just trying to raise my ranking as much as possible. I go to uni in August, so it’s just going to be playing as many tournaments as I can until then. So I don’t really have a set number, but just improve my ranking as much as possible. Do you see yourself focusing more on singles, doubles or both as you progress? A little bit of both. I think probably will be more leaning towards singles, but still going to be playing doubles and everything. Yeah, just focusing on both, I guess.”

–IANS

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