Chennai Open final moved to Monday after rain and smog

The Chennai Open final between Indonesia's Janice Tjen and Poland's Magda Linette was shifted to Monday after rain and poor air quality prevented play on Sunday in Chennai. Organisers scheduled the women's singles title match for 11 am on November 9.

The WTA 250 contest at the SDAT Stadium in Nungambakkam had been due to start at 6.30 pm, following the doubles final. Rain forced three delays before organisers dried the centre court and announced a 9 pm start.

An hour after that announcement, the match was called off. Smog from Deepavali firecrackers had reduced visibility, with air quality at the time described as unhealthy.

Both finalists briefly met supervisor Sheetal Iyer on court before leaving with their bags. The WTA subsequently confirmed that the Chennai Open final would take place on the tournament's reserve day.

The Tamil Nadu Tennis Association said spectators holding valid tickets for Sunday's session could use them to enter on Monday. Rain had also disrupted earlier stages of the tournament, including a washout on the main draw's opening day.

Indian doubles pair finishes runner-up

The doubles final was completed before the singles postponement. Switzerland's Simona Waltert and Naima Karamoko defeated Vaishnavi Adkar and Rutuja Bhosale 6-2, 6-0 to take the title.

Before Adkar and Bhosale's run, no doubles team made up entirely of Indian players had contested a final at WTA Tour level. They had beaten second seeds Weronika Falkowska and Alana Smith 6-2, 2-6, [10-8] in the semi-finals.

In singles, defending champion and top seed Tjen reached the final by defeating Robin Montgomery 6-3, 6-4. Third seed Linette recovered against Anastasia Zakharova to win 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 and earn another chance at the Chennai title after finishing runner-up in 2022.

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