New Delhi, April 10 India had a dominant performance as Zeel Desai secured a straight-set victory on her Billie Jean King Cup debut against 15-year-old Anu-Vjin Gantor, while Sahaja Yamalapalli followed suit, winning without dropping a game to seal the tie against Mongolia in Group I of the Asia/Oceania on Friday.
Desai dominated her opponent 6-0, 6-0 in just 37 minutes, before Sahaja Yamalapalli defeated 32-year-old Jargal Altansarnai with a score of 6-0, 6-0 in 42 minutes at the DLTA Complex.
The home players had an easy time, as their unranked opponents were unable to pose a serious threat.
India will face Korea on Saturday, the final day of the competition, and are likely to retain their position in Group I.
The defeat against Thailand has put India in a difficult position, as it has jeopardized their chances of finishing in the top two. The top two teams in the six-team event will advance to the playoffs, while the bottom two will be relegated to Group II.
Considering Gantor's inexperience, who has only managed to win one game so far in the tournament, India captain Vishal Uppal decided to give Desai a chance to gain match experience.
Clearly, Gantor is not yet ready to compete at this level. She still has a lot to learn, but such defeats can also be demoralizing. Putting an inexperienced player at this level was simply a matter of having no other options.
Gantor barely managed to win any points on her own. She only scored a point when Desai made an unforced error.
The Mongolian teenager seemed to have lost her will to fight, and instead, resigned herself to defeat. She struggled to return the balls consistently, making the match a dull affair.
The Indian camp will not complain, as they need to win this tie against Mongolia and against Korea on Saturday to keep their chances of reaching the playoffs alive.
Sahaja also won easily. The same story unfolded, with no real fight. For Jargal, winning a game was already a struggle, let alone trying to overcome the 385-ranked Indian.