Sumit Nagal stood for a while, looking up at the heavens with his arms aloft. He then let out a roar before jogging across the court to hug his team members, which included former India no. 1 and close friend Somdev Devvarman. The newly-crowned Chennai Open winner Nagal, who just realised that his childhood dream collided with reality, was then left in tears
The last 14 months have been a story of resilience for Nagal. He was ranked outside the top 500 at the start of 2023 when Nagal decided to make a comeback after a long injury layoff. Later, in September of that year, the 26-year-old, who lifted Challenger titles in Tampere and Rome, admitted having financial difficulties. The year ended with chaos over the All India Tennis Association (AITA) not wanting to nominate him as a wild card for the Australian Open 2024 after Nagal opted out of the Davis Cup tie in Pakistan. Yet, overcoming every hurdle, bit by bit, Nagal stitched together one of the most inspirational runs that Indian tennis yearned to see.
Nagal ended his 2023 season ranked around 135, having also reached Challenger finals in Tullin and Hesinski (Tali Open). But that was only the beginning. The India No. 1, who arrived in Melbourne with just a feeling of contentment that he can compete at this level and be part of the Grand Slam experience yet again, notched up three consecutive straight-set victories in the qualifiers before stunning the entire world with his win over world number 27, and the 31st seed at the tournament, Alexander Bublik, also in straight sets, in the round one of the main draw. With that win, he became the first Indian, male or female, in 35 years to defeat a seeded opponent in a Grand Slam event.
Nagal later followed it up with a Chennai Open title win, his fifth Challenger trophy, but the icing on the cake was that the triumph saw him break into the top 100 for the first time in his career.
Speaking to Hindustan Times exclusively on the sidelines of Bengaluru Open 2024, where he notched up a round-of-32 win on Tuesday, Nagal opened up on his inspirational run this year so far and the special role Somdev has played in his run to top 100. Here are excerpts…
Q) Could you start by talking about your win against Geoffrey Blancaneaux in the first round? He’s the same opponent you faced in Australian Open qualifiers.
It was a very good match from my side, nothing to complain about. To be honest, I played a very clean match from start to finish. I was very solid from the baseline, with very few errors. I would definitely say it was one of my best matches this year.
Q) The last 15 months have been a story of resilience, but how would you sum it up?
Yes, of course. 15 months back, I had a certain ranking… now after a lot of good weeks with my team, a lot of hard work, and touchwood, I’ve been injury-free, which gave me a chance to play in tournaments, and I feel like that was the biggest opportunity for me.
Q) You were in tears after winning the Chennai Open, you hugged your team members and then let out a roar. Could you describe that feeling?
It was a very emotional day for me, and for my team. I’ve always dreamt about being in top 100 when I was a kid. And to do it in Chennai, to do it in your home country, in front of your own people, I don’t think I could have asked for a better place.
Q) Somdev Devvarman has been your staunch supporter throughout. Last year, when I asked him about which Indian player he saw making the top 100, without hesitation, he took your name. How important is it for you to have someone like Somdev in your team?
I really like working with him. I’ve learned a lot from him, especially the way he sees tennis. I feel like one of the biggest thing that was missing in my game was to realise the situation on the court, and he’s helped me a lot in that perspective.
Q) What was your key learning from that Australian Open campaign?
What I enjoyed was competing. And what I’ve done is improve month by month. I think the feeling of competing and the success of improving for me was the best two things I could have asked in those last 15 months.
Q) With no Tata Open Maharashtra around, do you think India needs more Challenger events besides these 4 weeks?
Yeah, having a few more Challenger events throughout the year would be nice. It would help everyone.
Q) What is your expectation from the Bengaluru Open? A repeat of what he recorded in Chennai?
I don’t like to think about winning the tournament. I don’t like to talk about winning the tournament before the matches. I like to take it match by match and I’ll be doing that on Thursday.
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