Robin Montgomery overcame a slow start to beat Maaya
| Photo Credit: R. RAGU
Robin Montgomery overcame an early setback to defeat wild card Maaya Rajeshwaran 6-3, 6-3 in the quarterfinals, ending the Indian challenge in singles at the WTA 250 Chennai Open on Friday.
The 17-year-old Maaya – the first Indian woman to feature in the last-eight stage of a Tour-level event since Sania Mirza in Pattaya City in 2012 – was particularly impressive in the early stages.
She tried to handle the 5’10” tall American’s lefty serve, which averaged above the 180km/h mark, by constantly adjusting her position near the baseline.
The Indian got the early break in the fifth game of the opener courtesy a netted backhand from World No. 151 Montgomery, much to the delight of the 500-odd spectators under the floodlights on Centre Court at the SDAT Stadium in Nungambakkam here.
But when it came to consolidating the break, the girl from Coimbatore, who had been landing plenty of first serves in the high 170s range, couldn’t find one till she was 15-30 down. Montgomery converted her first opportunity to restore parity.
Maaya also let the eighth game – in which she committed two double faults – slip after being 40-30 up and was broken again. The 22-year-old Montgomery, former World No. 95, served the first set out.
In the second essay, the American was in control as she earned the double break advantage at 4-1. After Maaya retrieved one of them back, Montgomery held quickly for a 5-3 lead and finished the job with a crosscourt backhand winner to break the Indian for the third time in the set.
Montgomery will face top-seeded Indonesian and reigning champion Janice Tjen in the semifinals.
World No. 75 Tjen recorded a come-from-behind 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 win over Russian-born Uzbek Polina Kudermetova in a match that was briefly suspended due to a passing shower.
Vaishnavi Adkar and Rutuja Bhosale kept the Indian challenge alive in doubles with a 7-5, 6-4 win over Montgomery and Great Britain’s Jodie Burrage. Vaishnavi and Rutuja moved into the semifinals. However, Maaya and Shrivalli Bhamidipaty lost 3-6, 4-6 to Isabelle Haverlag of the Netherlands and Hungary’s Panna Udvardy in a last-eight clash.
The results (Quarterfinals): Robin Montgomery (USA) bt Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi 6-3, 6-3; Janice Tjen (Ina) bt Polina Kudermetova (Uzb) 5-7, 6-4, 6-2; Magda Linette (Pol) bt Mai Hontama (Jpn) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.
Published – November 06, 2026 11:53 pm IST
