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Aussie Mavericks Kites team members celebrate with the trophy.
| Photo Credit: K. MURALI KUMAR
Dhakshineswar Suresh starred for Aussie Mavericks Kites as it beat AOS Eagles 22-19 to win the fourth edition of the World Tennis League, at the S.M. Krishna Stadium here on Saturday.
Going into the final rubber against compatriot Sumit Nagal, Dhakshineswar had the responsibility to guard a slender 15-13 lead for his team. And the 25-year-old played a fine set, which culminated with a perfect tie-break that he won to four points.
On the day, Dhakshineswar won two of three matches he played, and carried a side that had looked down and out after losing the first two round-robin fixtures and had sneaked into the final by the narrowest of margins.
Earlier in the evening, another Indian Shrivalli Bhamidipaty impressed for the Eagles, both in her singles contest versus Marta Kostyuk and the doubles encounter partnering Frenchman Gael Monfils against Kostyuk and Dhakshineswar.
The 24-year-old Shrivalli was the better player against Kostyuk in the initial phase, even breaking the World No. 26’s serve once.
The Ukrainian 23-year-old eventually broke down Shrivalli’s power-packed game by working the angles and using top-spun balls, but not before the Indian ensured that the holiday crowd had a home name to chant.
The result (final): Aussie Mavericks Kites bt AOS Eagles 22-19 (Marta Kostyuk bt Shrivalli Bhamidipaty 6-4; Kostyuk & Dhakshineswar Suresh lost to Shrivalli & Gael Monfils 3-6; Nick Kyrgios & Dhakshineswar bt Sumit Nagal & Monfils 6-3; Dhakshineswar bt Nagal 7-6).
Published – December 20, 2025 10:28 pm IST
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Dhakshineswar steers Kites to WTL title
