Nishangan and Anika take top honours at Colombo Championship

734

It was 15-year-old Anika Seneviratne who took home the Women’s Open Singles title while Nishangan Nadaraja emerged victorious in the Men’s Singles at the 102nd Colombo Championships that was worked off at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA) playing courts over the week.

The 102nd Colombo Championship that kicked off on the 27th of last month is one of Sri Lanka’s Super ‘A’ graded tournaments played annually at the playing courts. The tournament attracts the cream of tennis talent and is highly competitive.

Roshenka Fernando (L) and Anika Seneviratne (R) exchange pleasentaries after the final
Roshenka Fernando (L) and Anika Seneviratne (R) exchange pleasentaries after the final

The junior national champion, Anika Seneviratne claimed her first super ‘A’ grade Women’s Singles win defeating Roshenka Fernando in the finals. It was Seneviratne who won the first set 6-0 while Fernando fought back to win the second 1-6.

However, it was Seneviratne who came out on top in the final decisive set winning it comprehensively. The final scores read 6-0, 1-6 & 6-1. Anika made it to the finals defeating Shenalie Weerasekara 6-0, 6-2 in the semifinals and Rukshika Wijesooriya in the quarters.

Meanwhile, it was former Peterite Nishangan Nadaraja who cruised to his first Men’s National Super ‘A’ grade title defeating Sankha Atukorale in a crunch final encounter. Having lost the first set 2-6, Nadaraja fought hard to win the second with the game extending to the tie-breaker. The third set went in favour of Nadaraja as he got the highest honour. The final score read 2-6, 7-6(11) & 6-3.

He was phenomenal in the series and also defeated Pakistan national Heera Ashiq 6-4, 6-2 in the semifinals. Nadaraja who is currently in the United States for his education made an impressive comeback to the local tennis arena and is expected to be on the Sri Lanka Davis Cup team when the country fights for a promotion spot to the Group II of the Asia/Oceania region.

Triple honours for Anika

The 15 year old was the stand out of the tournament
The 15 year old was the stand out of the tournament

The Colombo Championship winner Anika Seneviratne took two more national titles over the course of the week winning both the Women’s Doubles as well as the Mixed Doubles. Seneviratne teamed up with Dineshkanthan Thangarajah to defeat the Medhira Samarasinghe-Sanka Atukorale pair. The duo won the finals 6-1, 7-5.

Later, Seneviratne paired up with Jithmie Jayawickrema to win the Women’s Doubles. The duo won against Roshenka Fernando & Rukshika Wijesooriya. The Seneviratne-Jayawickrema pair won the finals with ease as scores read 6-2, 6-1.

It was a successful tournament for young Seneviratne bagging three open titles. With the open competition coming to a close, the Colombo Championship will progress to the junior draws with the tournament set to conclude during the course of the week.