New Delhi: Megan Fudge had gone down to Roos Van Reek 7-15 when she met her for the first time at the Indian Pickleball League (IPBL) on December 2 here at the KD Jadhav Indoor Hall.
Unfamiliar with the Netherlands-born Australian pickler’s gusty style of play, Megan faltered in the match, and Hyderabad Royals lost the tie. But on Saturday, Megan not only avenged her defeat to Roos in women’s singles but also emerged as the standout player of Qualifier 1 as she singlehandedly propelled Hyderabad Royals to the final of the IPBL.
Ahead of the much-anticipated clash – those well acquainted with developments at the IPBL called it the match of the tournament – Megan had humbly said: “I can definitely give myself a better shot playing her this time. She’s a phenomenal player.”
But on Saturday, Megan changed that narrative. She not only gave Roos a tough competition but put her entire Chennai franchise on the back foot.
Playing for six consecutive days in the IPBL, the American pickler mastered her game for the Indian court and dominated proceedings against Roos in the women’s singles match, with Hyderabad trailing 0-2 in Qualifier 1 after Chennai won the men’s singles and doubles matches.
Starting with a 2-0 lead, Megan, under pressure to pull her team through, made her intent clear from the onset by operating on the baseline and ensuring she did not give Roos space to play dinks.
Unlike the last match, where Roos dictated the rallies and pushed Megan to her limit, the Royals’ star player pushed Chennai Super Warriors’ top women’s singles player to the back court and drew unforced errors from her by accelerating and decelerating the rallies. Roos, who had dished out a near-perfect performance winning five matches in a row, looked clueless as her shots went out, while her backhand flicks clipped the net.
Although Roos briefly fought back to level the score at 13-13, Megan, determined to bring Hyderabad Royals back in the tie, remained unbothered. She won the next two points with precision rallies, with the final point coming when Roos played the ball into the net.
Roos’ defeat dents Chennai’s confidence
Roos’ first defeat in women’s singles perhaps dented her as well as her team’s confidence, and it was apparent in the women’s doubles match. Playing with Aaliya Embrahim, she failed to extend Chennai’s lead, as Megan, pairing up with Shreya Chakraborty for the second time in the tournament, brought Hyderabad back into the tie by leveling it at 2-2 with a 15-13 win, forcing the deciding Grand Rally. In the process, Megan also avenged her women’s doubles defeat from their first meeting of the tournament.
The win came after Megan put together a well-thought-out strategy by watching Roos – the unbeaten player in the tournament until Megan beat her – throughout the week.
“I’ve been watching a little bit of her matches all week. It really came down to me making, getting more depth on my ball, making her play more, stretching her out a little bit more. She definitely gave me a lot more errors than she probably has hit all week against the entire singles group,” Megan told Pickleball Now.
“So I took all the errors I can get from her. She’s a very, very aggressive player. And so sometimes it’s on and sometimes it’s going to be off. Today I got her on an off day. Overall I felt better on the court. I was definitely trying to stay low and load my legs more. You know, the balls are very, very low bouncing. So yes, just trying to push through it physically,” she said, explaining her strategy.
Pulling Hyderabad Royals through
Upbeat after her back-to-back wins, Megan turned out to be Hyderabad’s saviour in the Grand Rally. Playing vigorously and with unfathomable energy, the 38-year-old mother of two, pairing with Snehal Patil, put Hyderabad in command at 12-8.
Harsh Mehta and Mitchell Hargreaves then drew the score level at 12-12 for Chennai and took a 13-12 lead, as Ben Newell and Divanyshu Kataria failed to retain the advantage given by Megan.
However, no sooner had Megan returned to the court in place of Ben than the score was back level at 14-14. Hyderabad eventually took an 18-17 lead, handheld by Megan, and the Royals became the first team to reach the final of the IPBL.
Reflecting on her team’s magnificent comeback win, Megan said she was well aware of her worth to the team. “I felt like when I was on the court, I felt like I’m trying to bring a calmness and a confidence on the court that my team can get behind,” she said.
“It was a fantastic team win, to be honest. We’ve been working really hard. We as a team stepped up today to make it happen and be aggressive. I was really proud of how the girls stepped up. The guys played really, really well in mixed doubles. Still not clean enough for my liking, but we’ll take the win for today. We had to beat them. They didn’t give it to us. We had to be aggressive. And that’s what we stepped up today,” she added.
She also praised Chennai for their fighting spirit. “I definitely have to give credit to Harsh (Mehta) and Mitch (Hargreaves) of Chennai. They played very, very good men’s doubles. I don’t want to say our guys didn’t do a good job. But I think it came down to those two guys playing really well,” she said.
“I think sometimes the lack of experience rattles them. And a big moment like that can make them feel that they’re not enough. But I hope that my presence on the court and my demeanour on the court helps my teammates to feel that we can believe and that we can do it,” Megan added.
As Hyderabad Royals became the first finalists in the IPBL, she said: “I’m super happy about today’s win, but I’m still hungry for more.”