Pune, April 8 (IANS) India went down 1-2 to the Billie Jean King Cup Asia-Oceania Group 1 tie, kicking off their campaign with a defeat on the opening day of the prestigious team tournament for women that India is hosting for the first time.

While the hosts began brightly with the dynamic Shrivalli Bhamidipaty registering a resounding win in her match, it was New Zealand who had more in the tank on the day, and roared back to win the tie 2-1, here at the Balewadi Sports Complex in Pune.

Up first for India was Shrivalli Bhamidipaty, who was facing Aishi Das. The Indian youngster, who has been steadily going up the rankings so far, put on a power-packed performance in the national colours. In just under an hour, Shrivalli wrapped up a comprehensive win with six aces and a healthy break-point conversion rate to win the contest 6-1, 6-1, and give India a 1-0 lead.

Game 2 of the India vs New Zealand tie saw Sahaja Yamalapalli take on the experienced Lulu Sun in what was the second singles match. The young Indian was up against it as her opponent used the court and her power wisely. The match lasted an hour and 13 minutes, with Lulu Sun making Sahaja work hard for her points. Eventually, the New Zealander won 6-3, 6-3 to level the contest at 1-1.

In the doubles game, India had the experienced duo of Ankita Raina and Prarthana Thombare squaring up against the Kiwi duo of Lulu Sun and Monique Barry. The Indian pairing gave it their all under the floodlights, but Lulu Sun and Monique Barry had the better of the exchanges.

The Indian pairing never really looked in control of proceedings but fought valiantly. Nonetheless, New Zealand walked off the court with a straight sets win of 6-3, 6-4 in an hour and 23 minutes.

The tournament was inaugurated earlier by former Fed Cup player Radhika Tulpule-Kanitkar, Sohini Kumari, Saujanya Bavishetty, Pranjala Yadlapalli, Sai Jayalakshmi, Aarti Ponappa Natekar, Maharashtra’s international tennis players Bela Phadke, Radhika Mandke, and Sheetal Kannamwar Iyer.

On this occasion, Maharashtra's international tennis players Rutuja Bhosale, Radhika Godbole, Bela Phadke, Vaishnavi Adkar, and Sheetal Kannamwar Iyer were also felicitated. The awards were presented by MSLTA Chairman Bharat Oza, Tournament Director and MSLTA Hon Secretary Sunder Iyer, Treasurer Sudhir Bhivapurkar, Joint Secretaries Rajiv Desai and Sheetal Bhosale, and Chief Executive Officer Manoj Vaidya.

India will take on Thailand in their second match of the Billie Jean King Cup on Wednesday.

--IANS

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