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Sumit Nagal rewrites record books with monumental win over World No. 27 Alexander Bublik, into Australian Open 2nd round
Sumit Nagal registered a straight-set win over Alexander Bublik to storm his way to Australian Open Round 2.
Sumit Nagal, India's highest-ranked men's singles tennis player, stormed to a historic win by beating the 31st-seeded Alexander Bublik 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 [7-5] in the first round of the Australian Open 2024. Nagal, World No. 137, saw off a player ranked 100 places above him, and that too with ease, to become the first Indian male since Ramesh Krishnan to topple a seed in a Grand Slam men's singles match. Krishnan had beaten then World No.1 and defending champion Mats Wilander in the second round of the Australian Open way back in 1989.
Notably, Krishnan beat a seeded athlete at a Grand Slam singles match four times in his career. Thrice it happened during his quarterfinal run in the 1981 and 1987 US Open and then in the 1986 Wimbledon. Nagal also became the first Indian since Somdev Devvarman to advance to the second round of the Australian Open in men's singles. Somdev had beaten Simone Bolelli in the first round in 2013.
Bublik was seeded eighth when he played his final Adelaide International game against Britain's Jack Draper ahead of the first Grand Slam event in Melbourne. The Kazakh was outplayed by Draper as the 22-year-old registered a 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 win in his lead-up to the Australian Open. The 26-year-old arrived at the Australian Open as a seeded player following a semi-final finish at the Adelaide International. He defeated Daniel Evans and Lorenzo Musetti in Adelaide last week. Coached by Artem Suprunov, the Russian-born right-handed achieved his best-ever career rank (25) last year. But today just wasn't his day.
Nagal was on his mark from the very first serve of the match, breaking Bublik twice to take a 3-1 lead in the opening set. Something was amiss about Bublik, who conceded a couple of double faults and two unforced errors to make things easy for the Indian. He upped his intensity in the next to even it up but Nagal unleashed a stunning display of attacking tennis, firing two aces to grab a commanding 5-3 lead in the opening set. Bublik briefly threatened with a break back; Nagal held firm though, securing the set 6-4 and seizing the early match lead.
The second set saw Nagal continue his dominance, breaking Bublik's serve at the outset. Facing three break points himself, Nagal showcased steely resolve, winning four straight points to surge ahead 2-0. Bublik's frustration boiled over – he smashed his racquet after Nagal clinched another break to lead 4-1 – but the Indian's relentless pursuit of victory continued. He held serve once more, extending his lead to 5-2. Serving for the set, drama unfolded in the final game as Bublik saved three set points. Unfazed, Nagal roared with a mighty winner on the fourth, sealing the set 6-2.
Also Read: How Nagal tamed Bublik to create history
The third set is where Bublik rediscovered his range. With the wind settling down, the big man from Kazakhstan looked a lot more composed and began dissecting Nagal's tactics brick by brick. There were no serve-breakers in the first 20 minutes of the third set, making it 3-3, before Nagal changed the narrative. With Bublik serving, Nagal, down 0-30, raced back to make it 4-3 in his favour and stand two games short of closing the match.
Holding his serve, Nagal increased his lead to 5-2, but Bublik threw a spanner in the works. He held his serve and broke Nagal's to push the match into the tie-breaker. Amidst a series of anti-climactic moments, the Indian player maintained his nerves in the decisive set. He faced a familiar pattern as witnessed throughout the match - conceding three match points, leading to a tense tie-breaker at 6-5. A successful serve from Bublik could have led to a fourth set, but an untimely double fault gifted Sumit the victory in straight sets, allowing him to bask in the glory of his triumph.
