Somdev Devvarman
India’s ace tennis star Somdev Devvarman walked into the history books by winning the first ever individual gold medal in tennis for India at the Asian games. He achieved this unprecedented milestone after two grueling matches 24 hours ago- the men’s singles semi-final and the doubles final that he went on to win along with Sanam Singh fetching India a doubles gold as well. The impact of those matches couldn’t be seen in the final as Devvarman cruised past Uzbek opponent Denis Istomin 6-1, 6-2 in an hour and 22 minutes.
Somdev not only beat his opponent but also beat the numbers that were terribly against him. Istomin (ranked 40) is 66 places above Devvarman (ranked 106). On the last two occasions these two met, Istomin demolished the Indian wonder kid by very convincing margins. But, this time Devvarman got the better of his opponent by easing past his nightmare on a day when it counted. Devvarman took the first set within 41 minutes and didn’t allow Istomin to settle down even on his serve. The Uzbek couldn’t hold sereve and was on the receiving end of some fierce attack.
It took only 44 minutes more for Devvarman to defeat Istomin as he went on to register his name in golden words. Devvarman won the match but Istomin equally lost it. Somdev’s start was so bright that Istomin was shaken in the opening moments itself and never retained concentration or form. For most of the match it seemed like Istomin was just trying to hit the ball, with no direction and cause. He committed 29 unforced errors in the first set and 17 in the second. In the long rallies Somdev was brilliant and when he was not, Istomin made severe mistakes that he later paid for.
Somdev was in good shape and looked in momentum right from the beginning. But, Istomin’s self-destructive game and lack of concentration tempted Somdev to go on the attack mode. When the one-sided battle ended there were tears of joy and extra-huge smiles on the Indian faces as Somdev Devvarman was given the gold medal which also meant that the Indian wonder-boy is the best in the continent.
Tags: Asian Games, Asian Games 2010, Gold, Gold Medal, India, Indian Sports, Somdev Devvarman, Sports, Sports India, Tennis
