India tennis star Sumit Nagal achieved a historic feat as he beat 27-ranked Alexander Bulblik to storm his way into the second round of the Australian Open 2024. Nagal claimed victories in straight sets to achieve a rare high for Indians in men’s singles in Grand Slams. He will now face the winner between China’s Juncheng Shang and the USA’s Mackenzie McDonald.
Sumit Nagal made history by becoming the first Indian to reach the second round of the Australian Open in 11 years. Before Nagal, India’s Somdev Devvarman was the last Indian to advance to the second round of the Australian Open, achieving this feat at the 2013 Australian Open.
The 26-year-old became the second Indian to defeat a seeded player at the Australian Open after Ramesh Krishnan in 1989 in the Open Era. Ramesh Krishnan faced the then No. 1 ranked Mats Wilander in the second round and accomplished the remarkable feat. Despite the possibility of Wilander securing a seventh consecutive victory against Krishnan, the match concluded with a straight sets scoreline of 6-4, 6-1, 6-3 in favour of Krishnan.
Nagal dominated the match against Bublik, not dropping a set and breaking his opponent’s serve multiple times. While serving for the match at 5-4 in the third set, Nagal faced a setback as Bublik broke his serve. However, Nagal made a comeback, forcing a tiebreaker, where he initially led 4-1. Despite Bublik’s comeback, Nagal had three match points at 6-3. Although Bublik saved two, he eventually made a double fault, securing Nagal’s victory.
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