CHENNAI: 2023 has not begun on a good note for India’s leading men’s singles tennis players. They have needed wildcards to even qualify for the main draw of a home Challenger. None of them managed to figure in the qualifying rounds of the Australian Open, first time that has happened in recent times.
A few of the singles players are also increasingly pivoting to doubles where the stress on the body is less. To top it off, they were relegated to World Group II in the Davis Cup for the first time in their history. To put it mildly, the only way is up.
Sumit Nagal showed there’s still some life left with a come-from-behind three sets win over Jason Jung to advance to the quarterfinals of the Chennai Open. On a typical early Chennai summer day, Nagal, who lost nearly 14 months in 2021 and 2022 recovering from hip surgery, showed the form that had taken him to a career-high of 122 in August 2020.
Ranked 506 these days as he suffered some early exits whilst still feeling his way from the above-mentioned hip surgery, he used one his big weapons — forehand — in an effective manner to ground Jung in almost two hours 3-6, 6-2, 6-0. By the time the third set begun, it was evident that the Indian, who became the first from the country to reach the last eight of a Challenger in 2023, had gained the upper hand.
There were a few eyebrows raised when the 25-year-old didn’t get a wild card but having through the qualifiers, those extra few matches has helped him. He said as much in a press conference following his first round win over Ryan Peniston. He next faces unseeded Brit Jay Clarke for a place in Saturday’s semifinal.
Results (Rd 2): James Duckworth bt Hamad Medjedovic 6-2, 7-6 (3), Max Purcell bt Petr Nouza 7-5, 6-3, Jay Clarke bt Dimitar Kuzmanov 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.