The Karnataka pair of Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha and Soha Sadiq came up short in the mixed doubles final and settled for the silver medal on the final day of the tennis event at the 38^th National Games in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, on Tuesday.

Tamil Nadu’s Lohith Aksha Bathrinath and Lakshmiprabha Arunkumar duo carried far too many guns for the Karnataka pair, winning 6-4, 6-1 to emerge triumphant.

Despite the setback on the final day, the Karnataka tennis contingent still reaped a rich haul of one gold, two silver and bronze medals apiece to finish third overall behind Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.

Niki and Soha, the top seeds, stayed in the hunt till 3-3 in the opening set. Once Soha was broken in the seventh game, the Tamil Nadu pair had spring in their step and closed out the set without much ado.

For some strange reason, both Niki and Soha were not on top of their game. Bathrinath and Lakshmiprabha weren’t complaining as they began strongly in the second set, running up a quick 4-0 lead. Even if a few Karnataka supporters in the stands willed a fightback from their experienced pair, none was forthcoming. Niki managed to hold serve in the fifth game, but it was all over bar the shouting.

Result: Mixed doubles (Final): Lohith Aksha Bathrinath/ Lakshmiprabha Arunkumar (TN) bt Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha/ Soha Sadiq (Kar) 6-4, 6-1.