Superior Netherlands whip India 3-0

Bengaluru, Nov 16 (PTI) India's campaign in the Billie Jean King Cup play-offs ended in utter disappointment as Netherlands handed the hosts a crushing 3-0 defeat in their Group G fixture here on Sunday.

In the first singles, Shrivalli Bhamidipaty went down to Anouk Kovermans 2-6 4-6.

Sahaja Yamalapalli could not resist the powerful world No. 87 Suzan Lamens as the Dutch cruised to a 6-2 6-3 win at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium.

Later in the doubles, Ankita Raina and Prarthana Thombare were towelled by Lames and Demi Schuurs 6-1 6-1 in just 69 minutes.

Both India and the Netherlands had lost to Slovenia in their earlier matches, and will now return to their respective regional ties next year. Slovenia have progressed to the 2026 Qualifiers.

After giving a tough fight to Slovenia's Tamara Zidansek on Saturday, Shrivalli might have cherished the hopes of pulling off a consolation win over the less experienced Kovermans.

But those expectations were misplaced. The Netherlands girl, a world No. 198, lorded over the Indian with powerful serves and ground strokes.

The 21-year-old Dutch imparted acute angles to her massive first serves as Shrivalli often struggled for return, one of the primary reasons why she conceded double break to go 2-5 behind in the first set.

The breaks came in the third and seventh games, and a hold in the ninth helped Kovermans pocket the opening set without batting an eyelid.

The second set too followed the script of the first. Kovermans, who often struggled with her tossing which resulted in four double faults and a warning by chair umpire, kept her power game going to establish a 4-3 lead.

Shrivalli served her first double fault of the match, and then smashed a forehand over the baseline to hand her opponent the break in the seventh game.

It was enough for Kovermans to close out the second set and match with ease.

"I wanted to maintain an aggressive game from the beginning. This was my last game of the season and I am happy that it fetched me and the team the right result," said Kovermans after the match.

In the second match, Sahaja was no match for Lamens, whose booming serve, brisk court coverage and sharp ground shots left the Indian playing the catching up game throughout the match.

Lamens broke the home girl in the first and third games to cruise through the opening set, and then effected another break in the third game of the second set.

In a rare moment of consistency, Sahaja, a world No. 309, broke Lamens back immediately in the fourth game, but that was short-lived.

Two consecutive breaks in the seventh and ninth games helped Lamens seal the match, and the winning moment came along with a thundering down-the-line ace.

“It was a tough match. Susan’s a very good player with a lot of experience. She was challenging me every point.

“It was challenging, but it’s also a good experience because it shows me the level I want to get to and what I need to learn,” said Sahaja. PTI UNG SSC AM UNG AM AM