Indian-Origin Tennis Star Shristi Selvan Battles Severe Cramps, Two Medical Timeouts to Win USTA National Title

Top-seeded Shristi Selvan battled through severe hand and leg cramps, required two medical timeouts, but came out on top to win the USTA Billie Jean King Girls 16s National Championship in a brutal final. The 16-year-old Indian Origin star defeated longtime training partner Aarini Bhattacharya 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 to win the title at the Barnes Centre.

Selvan wasn't at her peak fitness and took medical timeout twice, including one in the final set, where she needed the assistance of two officials to leave the court after suffering from hand and leg cramps. After the second time-out, she faced a tough decision to withdraw or continue. But Shristi decided to hang on and eventually pulled off a remarkable win.

“I’ll do anything (to play),” Selvan was quoted as saying by the San Diego Union-Tribune. “I was determined to win this match. It’s always been a dream to go into U.S. Open Juniors to win and have Billie Jean give me the award, such a big dream.”

The victory capped a strong year for Selvan, who also won the Winter Nationals at the start of the season.

“I wanted to keep moving,” Selvan said. “If I was able to move her enough and test her physically, I could pull it out.”

Meanwhile, Bhattacharya, the 14th seed, also required a medical timeout early in the second set to address tightness in her back, which hampered her movement that cost her the set. “My movement was a little tough, but I make no excuses,” Bhattacharya said.

“The match changed in the second set. I had a point to go up 4-2 but made a drop shot into the net. I just made too many of those bad errors.”

Bhattacharya had earlier produced one of the tournament's notable results by defeating second-seeded 13-year-old Nikol Davletshina of Boca Raton, Florida, 6-2, 6-2 in the semifinals.

Selvan's victory also sets the stage for the next major challenge, with the teenager aiming at competing at the U.S. Open Junior.

Shristi’s family lives in Laurel, Maryland and her parents are originally from Chennai, India