Australian Open: Sumit Nagal Faces Early Elimination Against Tomas Machac
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Melbourne, Jan 12 (NationPress) India’s Sumit Nagal faced early elimination in the Australian Open after succumbing to Czechia’s Tomas Machac in the opening round of the men’s singles competition at Melbourne Park on Sunday.
Ranked 91st in the ATP singles standings, Nagal lost to the world No. 25 Machac with scores of 6-3, 6-1, 7-5, in a match lasting two hours and five minutes. The 27-year-old was the sole Indian representative in the singles competition.
Nagal commenced the match strongly, yielding only two points in his initial three service games. However, Machac broke serve in the seventh game to gain a 4-3 advantage, subsequently wrapping up the first set decisively.
During the second set, Nagal had a golden opportunity to break but Machac saved the breakpoint in the first game. As the set unfolded, Nagal's performance waned, as he dropped two service games at 40-0 and 40-15. He attempted to challenge Machac’s serves in the fifth and seventh games but was unable to capitalize on those chances.
In the third set, Nagal started with vigor, breaking Machac in the second game and racing to a 3-0 lead. Nonetheless, Machac staged a comeback, breaking Nagal in the seventh and ninth games, ultimately clinching the match in straight sets.
Last year, Nagal made headlines by reaching the main draw through qualifying rounds and defeating Kazakhstan’s World No. 27 Alexander Bublik in the first round, marking him as the first Indian man to defeat a seeded player in a Grand Slam since Ramesh Krishnan in 1989. He was eliminated in the second round by China’s Juncheng Shang.
In the doubles category, Indian participation continues with matches commencing on Tuesday. Rohan Bopanna, the 2024 Grand Slam champion alongside Australia’s Matthew Ebden, will team up with Colombia’s Nicolas Barrientos this year. Other Indian players include Yuki Bhambri partnering with France’s Albano Olivetti, N Sriram Balaji with Mexico’s Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela, and Rithvik Bollipalli teaming up with the USA’s Ryan Seggerman.
This year, no Indian woman has qualified for the Australian Open.
