Pune, Nov 06: Wimbledon junior doubles winner Sania Mirza will inaugurate third edition of the USD 10,000 NECC-ITF women's International Tennis Championship, which will begin here on November 10. The event which has grown in strength and stature over the years will see in action the 251st ranked, Hana Sromova of Czehoslavakia leading the pack followed by country-mate Gabreiela Navratilova ranked 305, Khoo Chin Bee of Malaysia ranked 337 and Akgul Amanmuradova of Uzbekistan.

The Indian challenge will be lead Afro-Asian games doubles champion and 414 ranked Rushmi Chakravarthi.


Other top Indian players figuring in the main draw will be Meghana Waharia, former national champion Isha Lakhani, Sai Jaylaxmi, Sonal Phadke, Liza Pereira, Archana Venkatraman, Ankita Bhambri and Shruti Dhawan.
Anand Tulpule, the tournament director, yesterday said the event offered a total prize money of Rs five lakh and had 10 foreign players among the direct entrants with their WTA rankings ranging from 251 to 456.


"Considering the close ranking of these top notched players, we expect the competition to be quite fierce and close one among the leading Indian stalwarts and the balanced mix of foreign talent in the grid of 32-20 main draw, 8 qualifiers and four wild card entrants," Tulpule said. Bureau Report