Aus Open: Sumit Nagal ousted by Juncheng Shang in second round
He lost to China's 18-year-old wild card Juncheng Shang in the men's singles second round, 6-2, 3-6, 5-7, 4-6, in two hours and fifty minutes.
Indian tennis star Sumit Nagal on Tuesday advanced to the second round of the men’s singles competition in the ongoing US Open in New York after beating local player Bradley Klahn 6-1, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.
With the win, Nagal has become the first Indian tennis player to win a singles match in the main draw of a Grand Slam in the last seven years. It was his second apperance in a singles match in the US Open after last year’s opening round exit against Roger Federer.
Nagal maintained a win percentage of 80 per cent on his first serves in the first set during which the experienced American made 15 unforced errors.
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The Indian continued to dominate and clinched the second set 6-3 but was broken at a crucial juncture in the 3rd set after which Klahn held his serve and forced a 4th set.
Nagal gathered his focus back and clinched an early break. There was no looking back from thereon as the Indian youngster wrapped the first-round match in 2 hours and 12 minutes.
The 23-year-old will next face world number three and second-seed Dominic Thiem, who advanced after his first-round opponent Jaume Munar retired on Tuesday.
This year’s US Open is being played the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center from August 31 to September 13 behind closed doors amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, several top-ranker players have withdrawn their name citing health concerns due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Defending men’s singles champion Rafael Nadal and five-time champion Roger Federer have also pulled their name out.
Among women, world No.1 Ashleigh Barty, No. 2 Simona Halep, Svetlana Kuznetsova, No. 5 Elina Svitolina and No. 7 Kiki Bertens have joined the list of top players to miss the US Open.
With IANS inputs
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