Our last game against Goa Challengers was close and exciting. We eventually came through 8-7 and it was a highly satisfying win, giving us lots of confidence for the fixtures to follow.
This has been a good UTT for me so far. I started well against U Mumba TT’s Doo Hoi Kem and that got me going. I played well in my second outing against Sabine Winter of Puneri Paltan too, considering that I took one set and the last one went to a Golden Point.
Against Goa’s Archana Kamath too, it was a close call and I think I ought to have won that 2-1.
I feel that in this edition I have improved and am competing much better. The plan is to implement in match-play whatever variations that I try during practice sessions and it is working for me.
The format of this league is such that everybody is under pressure. Of course, it is giving us all good exposure and experience, especially if we face higher-ranked or international players. The team spirit has been really great. In our first team meeting, our captain Sharath Kamal kept it very simple, asking us to give it our best shot. Every team member has been contributing and even the junior members Anirban Ghosh and Yashini Sivasankar are practicing hard. I keep telling them that this is a great opportunity. Watching seniors from close quarters is the best way to learn and prepare.
The tournament is coming to the business end and all of us are pushing for our team to qualify for the playoffs. We have two more fixtures against RPG-SG Mavericks Kolkatta and Dabang Delhi TT to go.
My opponent could either be Manika Batra or Matilda Ekholm. I have played many matches against Manika and I am pretty confident against her. Facing Matilda would be a bit more challenging as she is a tricky player who imparts lots of variations in her spin.
We have had some good outings so far in the tournament with Petrissa Solja taking one set off Cheng I-Ching and Tiago Apolonia playing marvellously against Alvaro Robles in the mixed doubles. Sharath, as always, gives his 200 per cent and as I mentioned earlier, our last victory against Goa Challengers has given us a lot of confidence. (BVK Sports & Media)
Madhurika Patkar plays for Chennai Lions in the UTT
