Sumit Nagal to make dream Grand Slam debut, to clash with Federer in US Open opener
Somdev Devvarman, Yuki Bhambri, Saketh Myneni and Prajnesh Gunneswaran are the only ones who have played at Tennis Majors.
Published: 24th August 2019 11:54 AM | Last Updated: 25th August 2019 09:48 AM | A+A A-
Indian tennis star Sumit Nagal | AFP
NEW YORK: Since the start of April, Sumit Nagal has been the form player in Indian men’s tennis.
His jump in rankings — from World No 350 on April 1 to World No 190 on August 19 — is a clear indicator. On Friday night in New York, the slightly-built 22-year-old set a personal milestone as his purple patch found another gear.
Facing Brazil’s Joao Menezes, Nagal, who was down 5-7, 1-4 at one stage, clawed his way back to advance to the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time. His post-match celebrations at the net told its own story.
If that was the cake, Nagal got the icing when it was revealed that he would face Roger Federer under lights at Arthur Ashe in the US Open on Monday night, some draw to make your Slam debut.
“He is God of tennis, so I am looking forward to it” he told agencies after the win. It was a roller-coaster. Of course, I am super happy. I don’t even know what to say.”
It’s a just reward for the year he has had so far — 10 wins over players ranked in the top 200, a main draw debut at the World Tour 500 level and five semifinal appearances at the Challenger level. Even though the level Nagal has shown this week has surprised India coach Zeeshan Ali, he says this was a long time coming.
“He would always go on a run for 2-3 weeks and then you won’t hear anything about him for a couple of months. What he has done is incredible. Now the challenge for him is to sustain it. And he has an incredible opportunity to show what he is all about against Federer. When Federer plays, the world watches.”
Nagal’s win also means that India will have two men’s singles players in the main draw of a Major for the first time since 1998 Wimbledon (Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi).
Even though Ali is happy with that, he wants to see if the players can do this on a consistent basis. “For the sport to grow, this shouldn’t be a one-off. We have to do more consistently and more players should break into the top 100.”
The other Indian in the singles draw, Prajnesh Gunneswaran will face World No 5 Daniil Medvedev, also on Monday.
