Looking in imperious form, Ishaque Eqbal- the top seed- cruised into the quarter-finals of the boys' Under-14 category in the on-going Manav Mangal AITA Total Tennis Talent Series at Manav Smart School, Mohali, on Tuesday.

After facing a stiff competition in both the categories in his previous match, the West Bengal lad looked at ease and that showed in the way he demolished Dalwinder Singh of Punjab in straight sets by 4-0, 4-0. Second seed Sachin Kumar of Chandigarh also reached the quarter-finals after Jagtar Singh by 4-0, 4-1.

Meanwhile, third seed Dheeranush Bhatti of Chandigarh ousted Dhruv Puniani 4-1, 4-0 to book his berth in the last eight. Ishaque's brother Nishat, the fourth seed, also reached the quarters as he rallied to defeat Kanwalpreet by 4-2, 4-2.

In the Under-12 category also Ishaque maintained his authority as the top seed got the better of Teg Bir Singh Hara of Punjab in a well fought three sets by 4-1, 2-4, 4-2 in one hour 30 minutes. Param Pun, the third seed, outplayed unseeded Paras Mittal of Chandigarh by 4-0, 4-1. In another match, second seed Dheeranush Bhatti of Chandigarh blanked his opponent Rishabh Sharda by 4-0, 4-0 to reach the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, in the girls' Under-14 category, top seed Arushi Bhasin of Delhi, second seed Meenal Meharwal of Rajasthan, third seed Bhumika Sharma from Delhi and fourth seed Varnika Thakur of Punjab booked their place in the quarter-finals. Arushi who is also the top seed in the girls' Under-12 category, defeated her opponent to reach the quarter-finals. Others who booked their place with her in the last eight are second seed Harsimran Kaur from Haryana, fourth seed Bakul Negi from Delhi and third seed Shrishty Dhanda from Haryana.

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