WTA Chennai Open 2026: Indian trio eyes strong showing as withdrawals weaken main draw

Vaishnavi Adkar, Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi, and Sahaja Yamalapalli will aim to capitalise on wild cards, as withdrawals weaken the field ahead of Monday’s main draw.

Updated : Oct 31, 2026 21:48 IST , CHENNAI - 3 MINS READ

(L-R) Sheetal Iyer (WTA Supervisor), Hiten Joshi (CEO, Tamil Nadu Tennis Association), Panna Udvardy (Hungarian tennis player), Mr. Vijay Amritraj (President, Tamil Nadu Tennis Association), Vaishnavi Adkar (Indian tennis player), B. Venkatasubramanyam (Hon. Secretary, Tamil Nadu Tennis Association) during the draw ceremony. | Photo Credit: Nihit Sachdeva

For Indian tennis players, appearances in the main draws of Tour-level events come at a premium. Therefore, when a rare window of opportunity eventually opens up, it is important to cash in.

When the main draw of the third edition of the WTA 250 Chennai Open begins at the SDAT Stadium in Nungambakkam on Monday, Vaishnavi Adkar, Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi and Sahaja Yamalapalli will look to make the most of the wild cards awarded to them.

The 21-year-old Vaishnavi, country’s No. 1 player and ranked 334 in the WTA Rankings, will be up against Jodie Burrage, the 27-year-old Brit who has entered the main draw via a Protected Ranking of 149 but has been ranked as high as 85th in the world.

“Playing as India No. 1 is not really what I’m focusing on right now. It’s a big opportunity. I just want to focus on improving my game, playing against the higher-ranked players and give my best out there,” said Vaishnavi during Saturday’s draw ceremony.

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The 17-year-old Maaya, who recently clinched her maiden title at the senior level, faces Polish World No. 106 Katarzyna Kawa while 26-year-old Sahaja takes on Swiss World No. 128 Simona Waltert.

The host’s hopes of having more representation in the main draw took a major hit as all four Indians - teenagers Diya Ramesh and Jensi Kanabar, and seniors Shrivalli Bhamidipaty and Zeel Desai - lost in the first round of qualifiers.

Indonesia’s Janice Tjen, World No. 47 and the reigning champion, has been drawn to face former Junior US Open champion and wild card Katherine Hui.

Served the heat in 2025. Ready to raise the game in 2026! 🎾🔥 #SDAT #sportstn #TNSportsDevelopment #WTA250 #tennis https://t.co/a4WiJ8wrAJ

— Sports Tamil Nadu (@SportsTN_) October 31, 2026

The tournament already had a weaker field as compared to the WTA 250 event taking place in Hong Kong in the same week with the latter attracting a significant number of Top 50 stars. The situation has become worse after a spate of withdrawals in the last few days. As many as four players from the first direct entry list and three from the roster of qualifiers pulled out either due to injury, illness or due to the change in their schedule. It includes Thai World No. 57 Lanlana Tararudee, Kazakh World No. 67 Yulia Putintseva, and German World No. 70 and former Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria.

Austria’s Lilli Tagger, seeded second, and British World No. 115 Harriet Dart, feature in the draw but whether the two show up in Chennai or not will probably depend on how they feel after facing each other in Sunday’s final at the WTA 250 Guangzhou Open.

“The tournament draw is very heavy in the middle. It is wide open and anyone can win it,” said Vijay Amritraj, president of the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association.

Results (Qualifying, First Round - Indians only)

[5] Weronika Falkowska (POL) bt. [WC] Jensi Kanabar 6-2, 5-7, 6-3; [3] Mei Yamaguchi (JPN) bt. Zeel Desai 6-1, 6-0; [4] Viktoria Morvayova (SVK) bt. Shrivalli Bhamidipaty 6-2, 6-3; [2] Kyoka Okamura (JPN) bt. [WC] Diya Ramesh 6-4, 6-2