Balaji to clash with Joss in final of ITF Futures; Ranjit out

The fifth Balaji seed beat his unseeded Dutch rival Mark Vervoort 6-3 1-6 6-2 in the last-four stage match.

However, third seed Ranjeet's defeat prevented an all-Indian final when he lost 4-6 4-6 to Swiss Joss Espasandin.

The semifinal between Ranjeet and Joss was a tight affair but it was the Swiss player, who held nerves to earn points at crucial junctures of the match.

Ranjeet raised his game after the first set loss but Joss was up to the task. Joss served big and stroked beautifully. In particular, his down the line backhands were class apart.

He finished off the match in style, hitting a glorious backhand winner down the line.

In the doubles finals Vivek Shokeen and Rupesh Roy proved too good for Abhijeet Tiwari and Ashwin Vijayragavan and won in straight sets 6-2 6-4.

Singles Semifinals

N Sriram Balaji (IND) [5] bt Mark Vervoort (NED) 6-3 1-6 6-2.

Joss Espasandin (SUI) bt Ranjeet Virali-Murugesan (IND) [3] 6-4, 6-4

Doubles Finals:

Rupesh Roy (IND)/Vivek Shokeen (IND) bt Abhijeet Tiwari (IND)/Ashwin Vijayragavan (IND) 6-2, 6-4.