Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The third edition of the Bandodkar Panjim Gymkhana Tennis Open continued to deliver competitive encounters as players battled it out across several categories in the state capital.
In the men’s open singles category, Sreenath secured a narrow 6 to 4 victory against Arup Angle in a closely fought match. Debayan Das registered a dominant performance with a 6 to 0 win over Sagar Patki, while Kshitij Garg defeated Chiraag Sukerkar 6 to 3. Punit Fadte and Shrish Lohiya also impressed with commanding 6 to 0 victories against Allan Fernandes and Bhalchandra Gaitonde respectively. Raoul Vas cruised past Vedang Verlekar 6 to 0, while Dnyaneshwar Surushe defeated Sarvesh Bhobe 6 to 1. Neenad Desai progressed to the next round after receiving a bye.
The men’s 45 plus doubles category saw Sachin Dukle and Kevin Pinto Rebelo advance to the semi finals with a convincing 6 to 0 win over Kapil Nair and Swapnil Budge. Anurag Agrawal and Jai Gill defeated Kedar Tari and Shubert Colaco 6 to 1, while Naveen Daivajna and Neville Menezes blanked Kedar Palekar and Vilan Sawant 6 to 0 to move into the semi final stage.
In the Round of 16 matches of the men’s 45 plus singles category, Dimitry Smirnov produced the most dominant performance with a 6 to 0 win against Kapil Nair. Kalyanaraman B defeated Oscar 6 to 2, while Noel Noronha progressed with a 6 to 1 victory over Kedar Tari. Kishor Metry secured a 6 to 1 win against Kedar Palekar, and Neville Menezes continued his strong run with a 6 to 2 victory over James Stewart. Sameer Kakodkar advanced to the quarter finals with a 6 to 3 win against Manoj Pandey, while Anurag Agrawal completed a 6 to 0 victory against Shubert Colaco.
The men’s 60 plus singles category also featured dominant performances. Akhil Pavithran defeated Hanuman S Nayak 6 to 1, Ishan Bakhale cruised to a 6 to 0 win over Ishwar Parab, and Parag Prabhudesai secured a 6 to 1 victory against Santosh Fondekar.
The tournament is being held at the courts of Panjim Gymkhana and Clube Tennis de Gaspar Dias, bringing together players from across the state. Organised by the Goa State Tennis Association, the event continues to grow as a major competitive platform for local players.
Officials present at the inauguration included Narahar Thakur, Sameer Kakodkar, Sachin Dukle, Santosh Fondekar and Sanjay Shinde, among others.
The tournament honours the legacy of Dayanand Bandodkar and features participation from 247 players competing across several categories. Matches will continue over the coming days as the competition intensifies and players battle for top honours.
