New Delhi, Feb 20 (NationPress) In a thrilling matchup at the 2026 ATP Delhi Open, the second seed Rei Sakamoto from Japan is set to face off against fifth seed Oliver Crawford from Great Britain in the men’s singles semifinals. The other semifinal will feature two unseeded players competing for a shot at the title.

In doubles action, the top two seeded teams, Siddhanth Banthia (India)/Alexander Donski (Bulgaria) and Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha (India)/Pruchya Isaro (Thailand), have both advanced to the semifinals as well.

This ATP Challenger 75 event, now in its sixth edition, is taking place at the DLTA Complex from February 16 to 22, featuring 32 singles players and 16 doubles teams vying for the championship.

Sakamoto, a former junior World No. 1 and the 2024 Australian Open boys’ singles champion, rallied back from a set down to defeat fellow teenager and sixth seed Federico Cina of Italy with a score of 6-7(7), 6-3, 6-2. He will next challenge Crawford, who triumphed in an all-British battle against his good friend Jay Clarke, winning 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 after saving a match point late in the second set.

"Jay is one of my good mates. We have played for the same country, so we spent a decent amount of time travelling around, seeing the tournaments and practising together, so I knew it was going to be a battle," said Crawford post-match.

"I was fortunate to pull through in the second, and I thought both players showcased a high level in the third. I’m just very pleased to have emerged victorious," he added.

The second singles semifinal will see Stefanos Sakellaridis from Greece take on Felix Gill from Great Britain. Sakellaridis posted a dominant 6-0, 6-3 victory over eighth seed Rio Noguchi from Japan, while Gill needed three sets to defeat Michael Geerts from Belgium, winning 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

The dream of an Indian champion in the doubles event remains alive as well. Top seeds Banthia/Donski recorded a 6-3, 6-4 victory over wildcard entrants Divij Sharan/Karan Singh. Second seeds Poonacha/Isaro, fresh off their triumph at the Chennai Open ATP Challenger last week, continued their winning streak with a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win against Luca Castelnuovo from Switzerland and Rio Noguchi from Japan.

India has seen all-Indian doubles champions emerge twice in the past, with Saketh Myneni/Sanam Singh and Yuki Bhambri/Mahesh Bhupathi lifting the trophy in 2015 and 2016, respectively. With the Indian challenge in singles concluded, Somdev Devvarman holds the distinction of being the only Indian singles champion in the tournament’s history, having secured back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015.

As part of the ATP Challenger 75 series, the tournament will award 75 ranking points to the singles and doubles champions, 44 points to the singles runner-up, and 50 points to the doubles runners-up. The singles champion will receive $17,000 in prize money, while the runner-up will earn $9,600. The doubles champions will split $4,980, and the runners-up will share $2,880.