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What is soft tennis, the little-known sport in which Jay Meena won a historic Asian Games medal for India?
Jay Meena bagged India's first-ever Asian Games medal in soft tennis.
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If Quimcy Dsouza had India scrambling through Google pages about teqball, another little-known sport, sparked intrigue on Wednesday, triggered by a historic medal at the ongoing Asian Games.
On Day 5 in Aichi-Nagoya, amid the disappointment of Manu Bhaker's medal miss and the frenzy around Mirabai Chanu's maiden Asiad medal haul, Jay Meena bagged India's first-ever Asian Games medal in soft tennis.
In a sport where India had never progressed to the knockouts at the Asian Games before, Meena assured himself a medal after winning his quarterfinal tie early on the fifth morning. He edged Sherwin Nuguit of the Philippines 4-3 (0-4, 4-2, 2-4, 4-2, 5-3, 2-4, 7-5) in a thrilling contest.
Deep Dive
His run ended in the semifinals against Japan's Takuya Kurosaka, who won 4-2 (3-5, 1-4, 1-4, 4-1, 6-4, 1-4). Meena had staged a stunning comeback after going 0-3 down to make it 2-3, before losing the final game. Yet the run was nothing short of historic, potentially marking a new beginning for the sport in India.
The medal subsequently sparked intrigue, leading to questions about what the sport is truly about. Is it similar to tennis? And how different is it from lawn tennis?
What is soft tennis?
It's essentially tennis as we know it, but played with a hollow, soft rubber ball -- 6.6cm in size and weighing 30-31 grams -- that is more susceptible to wind and spins far more easily than a regular tennis ball.
The racquet is different too -- lighter, more flexible and strung at a lower tension. The court is the same size as a regular tennis court, while the net height is also the same, at 1.07 metres from the court surface.
The sport originated in Japan in the late 1800s and later spread across Asia and Eastern Europe. It made its Asian Games debut in 1994.
Is the scoring system for soft tennis the same?
No. There is no 15-30-40 scoring system in soft tennis like in lawn tennis. The first player or pair to win four points wins the game.
At 3-3, the score reaches deuce, after which a player or pair must win two consecutive points to take the game.
Singles matches are best of seven games, while doubles matches are best of nine.
