Aug. 19: Former India No.1 Nirupama Sanjeev Thursday made the cut for the women’s tennis team for the Oct 3-14 Commonwealth Games. Nirupama, who became the first Indian woman to win a round in a Grand Slam in the 1999 Australian Open, is likely to play in both women’s doubles and mixed doubles. Nirupama, who is married and mother of a baby girl, runs a tennis academy in the US and has no rank at the moment. She made a comeback to the sport last year.
Sania Mirza will be spearheading the Indian women’s challenge with 20-year-old Poojashree Venkatesha as the second singles player. Rushmi Chakravarthi is the fourth member of the team. Tara Iyer and Sanaa Bhambri are the reserve players, All India Tennis Association (AITA) secretary-general Anil Khanna said.
The team was selected on the recommendation of coaches Nandan Bal, Enrico Piperno and Jaidip Mukerjea after the conclusion of Commonwealth Games training camp in Pune Wednesday.
The Team: Sania Mirza, Poojashree Venkatesha, Rushmi Chakravarthi, Nirupama Sanjeev. Reserves: Tara Iyer, Sanaa Bhambri.