Budding Odisha tennis talent Aahan scripted history on the auspicious day, Utkal Dibasa as she became the first player from the State to win an under-16 girls singles title in an AITA National Series Tournament on 1 April 2023.
The 12-year-old Bhubaneswar girl achieved this success at Sania Mirza Tennis Academy in Hyderabad, defeating top seeded Savitha Bhuvaneswaran of Tamil Nadu in the final 6-1, 6-3.
Earlier in the semifinals, Aahan beat fourth seed Lukshitha Gopinath of Tamil Nadu 6-2, 6-3. Being an unseeded player, Aahan had to win four matches on her way to the semifinals. She also finished under-16 girls doubles runners-up with Hritika Kaple of Maharashtra as her partner.
In the doubles final, Aahan and Hritika went down fighting to Tamil Nadu pair of Savitha Bhuvaneswaran and Lukshitha Gopinath 6-7(4), 6-7(4). The singles title was the first in AITA under-16 category for Aahan, who has the reputation of winning Asian U-14 singles crown earlier this year.