India's Vaidehi qualifies for singles main draw

Bengaluru: India's Vaidehi Choudhari on Monday earned a singles main draw berth in the KPB Trust ITF Women's Open as six Indian players will compete in the $40K tournament at the KSLTA Stadium here.

Vaidehi, who was included in India's Fed Cup squad earlier on Monday, eased past Punnin Kovapitukted of Thailand 6-1, 6-2 in the final qualifying round. Vaidehi will face Indonesia's Madelyn Nugroho in the opening round of the main draw, which will start on Tuesday.

The tournament is part of the ITF Women's World Tennis Tour and it is hosted by the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA).

Brenda Fruhvirtova, the 15-year-old from the Czech Republic, will be the top seed in the event and she will take on Taipei's Lee Ya-Hsuan, the organisers informed in a release on Monday.

Top-rated India player Ankita Raina, who is seeded fourth in the tournament, will face compatriot and wildcard entrant local girl Vanshita Pathania.

Sahaja Yamalapalli, another player who features in India's Fed Cup squad, will play Latvia's Diana Marcinkevica. Sahaja is also a wildcard entry along with Sharmada Balu of Karnataka and Zeel Desai. Rutuja Bhosale will also represent India in the singles. Dalila Jakupovic of Slovenia, a former World No. 38, who has appeared in all four Grand Slams, will headline the doubles competition with her partner Amandine Hesse of France.

They will face the Indian duo of Vaidehi Chaudhari and B Srivalli.