New Delhi: India's Sania Mirza staved off four match points but could not stop Australian Anastasia Rodionova from taking the gold by clinching the decisive tie-breaker 3-6, 6-2, 6-7 (3) in the women's singles final at the Commonwealth Games tennis competition here on Saturday.
Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi regrouped after their shock defeat on Friday to win the bronze medal in the men's doubles, beating fellow-Indian pair Somdev Devvarman and Rohan Bopanna, 6-3, 7-6.
Australian Peter Luczak and Paul Hanley won the gold, defeating England's Ross Hutchins and Ken Skupski 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
Fourth-seeded Sally Peers beat Olivia Rogowska 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-3 in an all-Australian clash for the women's singles bronze.
The atmosphere at the R.K. Khanna Tennis stadium was electrifying as jampacked stands rooted for home favourite and second-seeded Sania.
The presence of Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalamadi, actress Nafisa Ali and Olympic silver medallist shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore shows how keenly the final was viewed.
Sania, indeed, raised her game to match the crowd's enthusiasm as she fought back after a disappointing first set. She played some spirited tennis to take the match to a nail-biting tie-break finish.
The 137th-ranked Indian's serve proved to be her undoing again and her nine double faults only added to her misery. Sania was not able to hold her serve even once in the first set, and a stream of errors flew from her racquet in her attempt to go for outright winners.
The 62nd ranked Rodionova was equally inconsistent in her performance but had a better first serve percentage of 61 as compared to Sania's 56.
"I think what is important is that I gave my best. Unfortunately, I fell a bit short. It is an honour for me to be playing for my country," Sania said.
The two players are now level 1-1 head-to-head with the Indian getting the better of the Australian in 2004.
"Now, I feel like I am really an Australian and I am proud to be a part of this gold medal list. That's what I came here for," said a beaming Rodionova, who is of Russian origin.
"I think I was the lucky one to win today. I tried for every point, Sania played really well. She played great on match points but I knew I would get my chances. It was a good quality match and one of my biggest wins this year."
Both the players showed nerves in the beginning with neither able to hold serve in the first three games of the match. The Australian, however, was quick to recover, and with Sania being profusely erratic, sprinted to close the set in 29 minutes.
But just when it looked like a stroll in the park for Rodionova, Sania, with the crowd firmly behind her, raised her game by several notches in the second set and broke the Australian in the third and the seventh game to make it a set all.
The momentum swung back and forth in the decider, with the two sharing four breaks of serve and fighting for every point, producing stunning strokes to keep the crowd on the edge of their seats.
The crowd jeered Rodionova's errors as they cheered lustily Sania's every winner. The Australian did not let it affect her.
"I knew the crowd will be supporting Sania. I knew I had to stay calm or they would eat me alive," Rodionova said.
As the decider stretched into a tie-break, the Australian served and returned solidly whereas Sania's serve once again took a beating. Ironically, a double fault brought an end to Sania'a challenge and she flung her racquet in despair, but won the hearts of all those who packed the galleries with her spirited effort.
The crowd was gracious in acknowledging Rodionova's effort and she received a standing ovation as she walked off the centre court.
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