Fenesta Open national tennis: Mann Maulik Shah wins U-16 boys title

Mann Maulik Shah was crowned the under-16 champion in the boys category of the Fenesta National Tennis Championship after defeating Kevin Mrugesh Patel 6-2, 6-1.

Unseeded Mann Maulik Shah outplayed injured Kevin Mrugesh Patel 6-2, 6-1 to win the under-16 boys title in the Fenesta National Tennis Championship at the DLTA campus in New Delhi on Saturday.

Mann Maulik Shah won the Fenesta Open National Tennis championships in the U-16 boys category with a straight sets win (HT Photo)

In an all-Gujarat final, it was advantage Shah from the word go as his rival was nursing a heel injury. Shah still took almost 60 minutes to clinch victory.

The Ahmedabad teenager has had to work his way to the top. “Since I was not ranked in the competition it was challenging, but it turned out to be an amazing week for me,” Shah said after the final.

Shah, who lost in the first round of the under-18 boys’ section last week, said his focus in the coming weeks will be to improve fitness. “This is my last season in under-16. Good court coverage will help me make a big impact in the next group,” he said.

Patel said the heel injury restricted his movements on the court. “It was hurting me badly and I lost focus,” he said.

Haryana also dominated the girls’ U-14 final with Sandeepti Singh Rao scoring a 6-1, 6-1 win over Rituja Chaphalkar of Maharahstra.

The girls’ under-16 title went to top-seed Tanisha Kashyap of Assam, who defeated second seed Prinkle Singh of Chandigarh 6-1, 6-4.