HINDU - Saturday, Oct 26, 2002 - By Kamesh Srinivasan

When he serves big, Mustafa Ghouse does look a big player. The 22-year-old former national grasscourt champion played big and cruised into the DSCL National hardcourt tennis championship final with a 7-5, 6-4 victory over the second-seeded Nitin Kirtane here on Friday.

If anything, Mustafa Ghouse can intimidate an opponent with his serve and volley game, not to forget the well-directed groundstrokes, that includes a delightfully free-flowing backhand. That is, if he plays with confidence. More often than not, it is Mustafa who decides whether he would win or lose, not his opponent.

It was one of those days, when Mustafa felt that he could win, and did so in style, not giving much of a chance for the wily Nitin, who had dropped a mere 12 games in his previous three rounds.

Mustafa started the match with three aces, and added two more in his next service game. He managed to serve only eight more in the whole match, but half his job had been done with that good beginning, when he took a 3-0 lead with a break in the second.

He did lose his way after being 5-2 in the first set, but Mustafa broke Nitin in the 12th game to take the set.

In the second set, Mustafa played a lot better, to shut out the escape routes for Nitin, who had won the title here in 2000, beating Sunil Kumar in the final.

``I played patch at times, but overall I am happy with the way I am playing. I hope to play well in the final'', said Mustafa.

The fourth-seeded Mustafa, who had lost to Sunil Kumar in the final in 1999, will take on the sixth-seeded Vinod Sridhar in the final. The 22-year-old left-hander, Vinod was in good touch as he teased and tormented the 17-year-old Somdev Dev Varman, to reel off the first eight games.

However, Vinod's suspect serve gave way when he was serving for the match at 5-3 in the second set, and missed a matchpoint in the tenth. He got broken again in the 11th game, but broke back to force the tie-break, as his passing shots helped him fight the set. The tie-break belonged to Somdev who was by now very much rejuvenated to make a fight of it, if not win the contest.

The decider saw Vinod play a lot better, as he cut down on the unforced errors, and making it difficult for Somdev with some sharp strokes. Vinod raced to a 5-1 lead with breaks in the third and fifth games, and wound up the show in the eighth, for a 6-0, 6-7 (2-7), 6-2 triumph.

``The whole week I haven't been serving well. Usually, my serve is a put away. It was worse at times'', was the honest observation of Vinod, who was making his maiden final in the national championship.

The Chennai lad who is working with Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) and also pursuing MCA, sounded confident about his overall game, and the fact that he had nothing to lose in the final.

Well, if we talk about determination we have none to beat Isha Lakhani in the present assembly. The 17-year-old Mumbaikar moved into her maiden national women's final with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over the fourth-seeded Ankita Bhambri, in a contest in which both did not give an inch away to each other.

The left-handed Isha was in a spot of bother as she allowed the 15-year-old Ankita to fight her way back into the match after being 5-2 up, but played well in the climax to convert her third match point. It was an entertaining exhibition of attacking strokeplay from both the players, and it was Isha's strong will that seemed to be the driving force.

Isha has not been too pleased with the fact that she had to be a mere spectator in the six-member Indian women's team during the Asian Games. She is out to prove that she can play good tennis as well.

The third-seeded Sonal Phadke, who quelled the challenge from the fifth-seeded Shruti Dhawan in straight sets after being down 2-5 in the tie-break of the first set, will have to be at her best to deny the title for Isha.

The tall and athletic Sonal played better as the match progressed, but if she wants to convert her maiden entry into the national championship into a memorable one, after a string of three successive semifinals, she will have to serve a lot better, and keep the ball away from Isha.

Being a quick mover and one who plays with tremendous intensity through the match, Isha would be the favourite. She was in trouble in the junior girls section, when she lost the first set in the tie-break to Lata Assudani. The top-seeded Isha regrouped her game so well that she conceded a mere three games to Lata in the next two sets. She will meet Sasha Abraham who beat the second-seeded Poonam Reddy for the loss of three games.

It should be an equally interesting fare in the boys final, when defending champion R. Arun Prakash, who dismissed the challenge from Parantap Chaturvedi, takes on favourite Amanjot Singh, who has been treating the crowd to some of the best serves and groundstrokes in this championship.

It has not just been a matter of quality for Amanjot over the past week or so, as he has won all but one his matches in the men's and juniors section, including the qualifying rounds. Except for the loss against Vinod Sridhar, Amanjot has not dropped serve. Being a good mover and with an all-round game, Amanjot can be a handful for anyone.

If he develops a big heart to fight, Amanjot will be a hard nut to crack, not just in the junior ranks.

In the men's doubles final, Nitin Kirtane and Saurav Panja won their sixth national title together, overcoming Rohan Gajjar and Ajay Ramaswamy in three sets.

In the girls doubles final, Ragini Vimal and Priyanka Parekh beat the top-seeded Sharanya Pattabi and Nivedita Venkatesh in straight sets.

The results :

Men (semifinals ): Vinod Sridhar bt Somdev Dev Varman 6-0, 6-7 (2-7), 6-2; Mustafa Ghouse bt Nitin Kirtane 7-5, 6-4. Doubles (final): Nitin Kirtane and Saurav Panja bt Rohan Gajjar and Ajay Ramaswamy 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-4.

Women (semifinals): Sonal Phadke bt Shruti Dhawan 7-6 (8-6), 6-3; Isha Lakhani bt Ankita Bhambri 6-3, 7-5. Doubles (final): Isha Lakhani and Sonal Phadke bt Ankita Bhambri and Radhika Tulpule 1-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Junior boys (semifinals): R. Arun Prakash bt Parantap Chaturvedi 6-3, 6-3; Amanjot Singh bt Chatwinder Singh 6-1, 6-4. Doubles (final): Divij Sharan and Tushar Liberhan bt Amanjot Singh and Saurabh Singh 7-6 (8-6), 6-3.

Junior girls (semifinals): Isha Lakhani bt Lata Assudani 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-0; Sasha Abraham bt Poonam Reddy 6-0, 6-3. Doubles (final): Ragini Vimal and Priyanka Parekh bt Sharanya Pattabi and Nivedita Venkatesh 6-1, 6-4.

Mixed doubles (final): Shruti Dhawan and Ajay Ramaswamy bt Radhika Tulpule and Sandeep Kirtane 7-5, 3-6, 6-3.