Chennai, Jul 31 (UNI) A record number of 42 players, including top seed in the men's section Shekar Veerasamy of Karnataka, would be seen in action in the second edition of the Marina Open AITA Ranking Wheelchair Tennis Tournament to be held at the SDAT Tennis Stadium here from Wednesday.
Talking to reporters here on Tuesday, Tournament Director Hiten Joshi said the number of entries for the Men’s event was 36 and the top seed was Shekar Veeraswamy of Karnataka. Tamil Nadu was represented by 11 players with second seeded S Balachandar and fourth seeded D Mariappan leading the Challenge.
In the Women’s section, there was a total of eight entries with Prathima Rao of Karnataka being the top seed.
Others in the fray were K P Shilpa of Karnataka and Khushbu Ganatra of Maharashtra.
The Men’s Winner will get 30 points and the Runner Up 22 points, while the Women’s Winner will get 15 points and the Runner Up 12 points.
The Men’s Doubles events will also be conducted. The tournament carries a total Prize Money of Rs. 2,32,000. The first and second rounds of the Men’s Singles and the Round Robin matches in the Women’s event will be played under best of 17 games and from quarterfinals onwards the matches will be played to best of three sets.
The Finals will be played on August four. Tamil Nadu Tennis Association (TNTA) Secretary C B N Reddy said Tennis was a game for all--able and differently abled. He said that these events should also be held in the districts and appreciated ASTHA founder Sunil Jain for his untiring efforts to promote the tournament. Somdev Dev Varman, India’s former Top Tennis Star hailed the development of Wheelchair Tennis in India.
It was important that sport of Tennis spread far and wide and included the disabled. He was confident that in time these players will also make a mark in the International sphere.