India’s Vaishnavi Adkar was excited to make her Billie Jean King Cup 2026 debut. But she was defeated in her opening match by 1-2 against Thailand. She lost to lower-ranked Anchisa Chanta by sets of 1-6, 3-6. The event was held at the DLTA Complex. But avenging her loss, the Indian striked back the next day in style.
On Wednesday, April 8, India’s World No. 383 claimed her first win of the tournament against New Zealand. Vaishali defeated Aishi Das in straight sets by 6-2, 6-4. Speaking to The Bridge post-win, the Indian expressed her excitement on the win and how it felt to win her first match in the tournament while making debut for India.
She said, “Being the second player, it’s important that I start well and keep the energy high. It feels amazing that I was able to give the team the lead today. It feels really good. It was my first match [Thailand] playing in the Billie Jean King Cup, so I was definitely very nervous. I did not handle my nerves well, but that was a lesson learned for me.”
Vaishnavi further talked about trusting her skills and keep giving her best in the upcoming tournaments while representing India.
“Coming to court today, I had to focus on what I do best and just give my best. The most important thing after yesterday’s match was to have belief in myself. I know I have the ability, and even my coach and captain said the same. You just need to believe in your abilities. So I just focused on the things in my control and kept working on those,” she added.
For Vaishnavi the main objective while competing in the event was to believe in herself and trus the whole process until the very end. She kept motivating herself and got the win for her team.
After Vaishnavi, India are now at a 2-0 lead against New Zealand and have returned back to the campaign with a strong win in the Asia/Oceania World Group I Play-offs.
