Billie Jean King mug | The Netherlands appears to be too strong for India

The Netherlands had no trouble beating India 3-0 in the final Group ‘G’ tie of the Billie Jean King Cup play-offs at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium on Sunday.

The Netherlands and India, who finished second and third, were relegated to Group I. Slovenia, which recorded its second victory on Saturday, advanced to the qualifying round.

Shrivalli Bhamidipaty and Sahaja Yamalapalli were outclassed in the inconsequential draw.

The Netherlands fielded Anouk Koevermans, the country’s third-ranked player, in the opening rubber match against Shrivalli. Koevermans, who played in place of world number 137 Arantxa Rus, showed no signs of nerves. The 21-year-old was full of energy and showed fantastic coverage on the court.

“I told the captain that I want to run at every ball. This would force my opponents to make mistakes, which they did,” said Koevermans, the world number 198.

Inconsistent

Shrivalli had her moments but failed to stay consistent, especially on the big points. “It’s something I have to work on because it happened yesterday too,” Shrivalli said of not converting break point opportunities.

Sahaja was no match for world number 87 Suzan Lamens, who was clinical in her approach. Sahaja, India’s best player, lost for the second set in a row.

The Indian dream of securing a top spot in the qualifying round will now have to wait another year. Sahaja explained that the experience of playing at this high level will stand the players in good stead.

“We belong at this level, even though we lost to Slovenia and the Netherlands. Perhaps it comes down to the maturity level: we are doing better in key areas and staying focused on each individual point. These are the lessons of this campaign for us,” Sahaja said.

The result: Netherlands vs India 3-0 (Anouk Koevermans by Shrivalli Bhamidipaty 6-2, 6-4; Suzan Lamens by Sahaja Yamalapalli 6-2, 6-3; Suzan Lamens & Demi Schuurs by Ankita Raina & Prarthana Thombare 6-1, 6-1).