Archana Venkataraman ousted third seed Ankita Bhambri 6-2, 6-2 to enter the quarter-finals of the $5000 ITF women's tennis tournament at the DLTA courts on Thursday.
Bhambri had hardly been herself all through this week, trying to do too much on her shots. Even in her second round victory on Wednesday, the Delhi girl managed to win only because her opponent, Lata Assudani, lacked the stamina to assert herself when leading 5-2 in the second set.
The fifth seeded Venkataraman put an end to all of Bhambri's misery by playing a steady game. A seasoned player, she played to her strengths and let her opponent commit the mistakes.
That Bhambri, a junior Fed Cup team member, could not put away balls she otherwise would have scored outright winners off said a lot about the 16-year old's form.
A mentally tough player, Bhambri did try to stage a fightback, when she earned a break late in the second set to reduce the 1-4 deficit by one game, but then her game was in such disarray that soon she dropped serve again and with it any further hopes of a comeback.
Venkataraman runs into the in-form Liza Pereira in the semi-finals. The top seed defeated Yamini Thukkaiandi 6-3, 6-1 in just over an hour.
The other semi-final pits second seed Isha Lakhani and Sonal Phadke. It will be a rematch of the National championship final at the same venue last year.
Lakhani prevailed over Phadke then but should expect a more determined challenge on Friday from her Mumbai-mate who put paid to the hopes of Kamini Murugaboopathy 6-1, 3-6, 6-4.
But Lakhani should be more confident after packing of Sheetal Goutham 6-1, 6-3, in just 51 minutes in another quarter-final.
