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MUMBAI: Miraj Shirgaonkar and Vikram Malhotra evaded an early scare to get past Anil Mohite and Amit Mehra 8-15 17-15 15-11 in the JVPG Harman Baisakhi ISP Squash Classic at the Juhu-Vile Parle Gymkhana on Thursday.
But the scare was necessary, as Vikram put it after their much-expected win. "It helped us lowering our handicap in the next game. It was more about strategy than any kind of difficulty," he said with a grin.
Starting with a 8-0 handicap, Vikram and Miraj indulged in a few long rallies but ended up losing the first game 8-15. But then the strategy came up like Vikram revealed later. The handicap was reduced by two points for the next game.
And this one had the audience on the edge of their seats. But soon thereafter, Anil and Amit blew up their advantage with some sloppy shots. On the other hand, Vikram and Miraj closed in on their opponent's lead, even as the underdogs were egged on by the crowd.
After 20-minute long game, Vikram and Miraj won 17-15 and were again successful in keeping the handicap in the next game at a low 7. In the third game, the eventual winners launched a blitz and though they lost 4 points, they gained 15 to take home the game and the match.
The strategy for Vikram and Miraj worked in their third round match against Siddharth Samantray and Sunil Gambers as well. The former lost the first game and came back in the second and third to win the match 13-15 15-13 15-9. What also helped Vikram and Miraj was an injury to Sunil in the third game, making the latter part of the match a one-sided affair.
