It took them a couple of minutes longer than their quarter-final earlier in the afternoon, but Ajeet Rai and Tom Fancutt have cruised to another easy win in Brisbane, this time against Tai Sach and Keisuke Saitoh in the semi-final. In a match that had more good rallies than individual highlights, it was one of the latter which stood out in the first game, with Fancutt hitting a beautiful backhand return down the tramlines off the left-handed Saitoh. The first good rally came on the final point, with Rai forced to leave an overhead backhand volley short as Saitoh held serve.
Fancutt started Rai’s first service game with a fabulous soft forehand drop volley, and he won the great rally on the final point as well with a nice cross-court forehand volley. Sach started with a double fault, and got into more trouble when Rai hit a fabulous forehand return down the tramlines. A forehand volley into the net from Saito gave away break points, and Fancutt converted the second with a nice inside-out forehand volley. Fancutt then held to love, the only such game in the match, before Rai brought up break points with a fabulous cross-court forehand return into the tramlines off Saitoh. Fancutt’s return of the next serve went long, but Sach lost the deciding point when his attempt at a cute angled backhand volley went into the net.
Rai finished the next game with two aces, and that left Sach serving to stay in the set. Saitoh won a fantastic rally with a forehand volley into the tramlines, but a backhand from Fancutt went off Saitoh’s racquet to take them to deuce, and a first set point. Saitoh saved that when he smashed away a volley to win the deciding point, but a forehand over the baseline from Sach when Fancutt served gave away a second set point. Fancutt hit a backhand volley into the net to drop back to deuce, and the great rally on the deciding point ended when Saitoh dumped a forehand volley into the net. The set had taken 27 minutes.
Sach served first in the second set, but it was another unforced error from his partner that gave away a break point, this time when he hit a backhand volley over the baseline to end a good rally. Rai converted at the first chance he got, but it was a fantastic reflex forehand volley that won the point. It was the shot of the match. Rai had a comfortable hold to consolidate the break, but Saitoh found himself again facing break points when he hit a cross-court backhand wide. A great serve to Fancutt saw the latter’s backhand return fly back over the baseline, and Sach won the deciding point with a nice soft backhand volley.
Fancutt also found himself at deuce after following an overhit forehand with a double fault, but Rai smashed away a volley to win the deciding point. Sach then lost his serve again, the break being completed by an overhead volley from Fancutt, and Rai ensured that the top seeds were going to stay in control when he started the next game with two aces and finished with another. That left Saitoh serving to stay in the match, but he and Sach managed just one point before a beautiful forehand return of serve from Fancutt gave his team three match points. One was sufficient, with Saitoh being forced to hit a backhand into the net to end the match after 53 minutes. The final score was 6-2, 6-1.