Vaishnavi Adkar and Rutuja Bhosale made Indian tennis history by becoming the first all-Indian pair to reach a WTA Tour-level doubles final, beating second seeds Weronika Falkowska and Alana Smith at the Chennai Open.Vaishnavi Adkar, Rutuja Bhosale are the first Indian pair to reach a WTA Tour-level doubles final. Vaishnavi Adkar and Rutuja Bhosale had no idea they were making history when they stepped onto the court for their Chennai Open semifinal.

By the time they walked off, the Maharashtra duo had become the first all-Indian pairing to reach a WTA Tour-level doubles final.The Indians battled injuries, illness and a spirited challenge from second seeds Weronika Falkowska and Alana Smith to register a 6-2, 2-6, 10-8 victory on Saturday.For Bhosale, the achievement was particularly special given the physical challenges she had faced during the week. The Indian has been managing a left hip issue and also fell ill during the tournament.

Having her support system around, including her husband, made a significant difference."It's an incredible feeling, just to do it on home soil, doing it with someone I really enjoy playing with, someone I really believe in," Bhosale said. Neither player was aware that they had become the first Indian pair to reach a WTA Tour-level doubles final."We had no idea we were the first Indian pair.

It's something that I will always remember," Bhosale added.INDIANS HOLD THEIR NERVE The semifinal was far from straightforward. After taking the opening set comfortably, Adkar and Bhosale lost their rhythm in the second as Falkowska and Smith fought their way back into the contest.The Indians also found themselves under pressure early in the deciding super tie-break.

However, they stuck to their attacking approach to eventually edge out their opponents 10-8.Adkar revealed that a physical issue had affected her energy levels, particularly during the second set, making it difficult for the pair to maintain their momentum."It was a similar issue (to the one in singles). That is one of the main reasons my energy sort of dropped in the second set and we struggled a bit.

Even initially in the super tie-break, we started pretty slow," she said.The Indians knew they had to remain aggressive rather than allow the pressure of the occasion to affect their approach."One of the biggest things for us was to keep going for our shots. In the super tie-break, we also reminded ourselves to just enjoy this moment because it's very rare that you get to play a WTA 250 semifinal in front of the home crowd.

The atmosphere was just amazing," Adkar said.Bhosale admitted that the second set had been difficult to explain, with several close games going against them. However, she was pleased with how the pair responded in the deciding tie-break."I knew it was going to be fierce.

They go for all their shots. There were a lot of momentum shifts throughout the tie-break, but we had one agenda today, which was to go for all our shots, and that really worked for us," she said.A SPECIAL SEND-OFF FOR CHENNAIThe achievement carries added significance as the Chennai Open prepares to bid farewell to the city.

Adkar chose to focus on the opportunity the pair had made the most of."I am really glad that we could make the best out of it and play the final. That is how I am looking at it," she said.Bhosale, meanwhile, acknowledged the sadness of losing a tournament that has played an important role in her career.

She won a junior B1 event at the venue when she was 14 and has cherished returning to Chennai over the years."It's been my happy hunting ground since I was 14. I won my junior B1 here and every time I played here, I loved the conditions, coming back here, the food.

I have been cafe hopping here," she said.Reaching the final in the tournament's last edition made the occasion even more meaningful."Probably this is a sad part for our country, but for me, it's positive that we have reached the final during the last edition," Bhosale said.The presence of family members and their support also made the achievement special, particularly given the demands of travelling on the international circuit."These small moments mean so much to us as players. When you are travelling, they don't really get to see it because it's different and they don't understand the sport as much.

It's incredible that I could do it here, in front of my people and my entire team," she said.For Adkar and Bhosale, Chennai has already delivered a piece of Indian tennis history. They now have a chance to sign off from the city with a title.- Ends