The sun finally broke through the clouds on the third day to help the organisers complete the backlog of singles matches in the SKME ITF Open that has been hit by inclement weather.

And Bengaluru’s Soha Sadiq, the sixth seed, warmed the hearts of the hosts by storming into the quarterfinals of the $15,000 event at the KSLTA Tennis Stadium here on Thursday.

On a busy day at the office, Soha first brushed aside American Shria Atturu 6-1, 6-2 and returned two hours later to outclass fellow Indian Bela Tamhankar 6-0, 6-1 under lights to make her maiden last-eight stage appearance in an ITF event. She takes on New Caledonia’s Carolann Delaunay.

On the adjacent court, qualifier Abhaya Vemuri stunned third-seeded Elena Jamshidi of Denmark 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) to set up a meeting with seventh-seeded Akanksha Nitture.

Three other Karnataka players – Sreenidhi Balaji, Harshini Nagaraj and Kashvi Sunil – bowed out. While Sreenidhi lost in the second round, Harshini and Kashvi lost in the first round.

Sreenidhi, who fought back in splendid fashion in her opening match, sorely lacked the same intensity in the second round, losing 2-6, 1-6 to eighth-seeded Tanisha Kashyap.

The 18-year-old qualifier, who defeated Sonal Patil 6-4, 5-7, 10-7 in the morning, fired only in fits and starts and committed far too many errors against her seasoned rival.  

Tanisha, who too got off to a slow start, made the most of the generous offerings, and began to take control of the proceedings. She broke the Bengalurean in the third and fifth games to take a 4-1 lead and served out the set in the eighth game. Tanisha will take on American Paola Lopez in the quarterfinals.

Results (Prefix denotes seeding, Indians unless mentioned):

Singles (Pre-quarters): 8-Tanisha Kashyap bt Sreenidhi Balaji 6-2, 6-1; Paola Lopez (USA) bt Laalitya Kalluri 6-1, 6-2; 2-Vaishnavi Adkar bt Polina Kaibekova (Rus) 6-2, 6-2; 7-Akanksha Nitture bt Humera Baharmus 6-3, 6-3; 5-Arina Arifullina (Rus) bt Pooja Ingale 6-3, 6-3; Carolann Delaunay (Cal) bt Paavanii Paathak 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (7-3), 10-6; 6-Soha Sadiq bt Bela Tamhankar 6-0, 6-1; Abhaya Vemuri bt 3-Elena Jamshidi (Den) 6-2, 7-6 (7-4).

Round 1: Lopez bt Lakshmiprabha Arunkumar 5-7, 6-1, 10-1; Arifullina bt Harshini Nagaraj 6-3, 7-5; Sreenidhi bt Sonal Patil 6-4, 5-7, 10-7; Tanisha bt Yubrani Banerjee 7-5, 6-2; Pooja bt Jo-Leen Saw (Mas) 6-4, 6-4; Kaibekova bt Anjali Rathi 6-1, 7-6 (7-3); Vaishnavi bt Saumya Vig 6-2, 6-2; Jamshidi (Den) bt Kaili Demi Teso (Jpn) 6-1, 6-2; Abhaya V bt Yashaswini Panwar 6-3, 7-6 (7-3); Kalluri bt Sahira Singh 1-6, 6-4, 10-7; Paavanii bt Abhilasha Bista (Nep) 6-3, 6-2; Delaunay bt Kashvi Sunil 6-3, 6-1; Akanksha bt Smriti Bhasin 6-4, 6-3; Tamhankar bt Chandana Potugari 6-4, 4-0 (retd.); Baharmus bt Apurva Vemuri 6-1, 6-2; Soha bt Shria Atturu (USA) 6-1, 6-2.

CAPTION: PIX-1: Karnataka’s Soha Sadiq makes a backhand return during her win over American Shria Atturu in the first round of the SKME ITF Open in Bengaluru on Thursday.

PIX-2: Karnataka’s Soha Sadiq makes a backhand return during her second-round win over Bela Tamhankar in the SKME ITF Open in Bengaluru on Thursday.

PIX-3: Qualifier Abhaya Vemuri essays a forehand return during her shock win over Denmark’s Elena Jamshidi in the second round of the SKME ITF Open in Bengaluru on Thursday.