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Starting 2019, successful the 16 ATP Challenger tournaments that person been held successful India, determination has conscionable been 1 location victor – Sumit Nagal successful 2024 successful Chennai.
On Monday, erstwhile the Dafa News Bengaluru Open Challenger 125 gets underway astatine the S.M. Krishna Stadium wrong Cubbon Park, Nagal and a clump of Indians volition beryllium hoping to somewhat change this miserable record.
It volition assistance that this year’s competition, contempt being successful the second-highest tier of the Challenger Tour, has a debased cut-off. The past nonstop acceptance into the singles main gully is Eric Vanshelboim astatine No. 472.
The Canberra International Challenger, being played concurrently, has erstwhile World No. 4 and 2014 US Open finalist Kei Nishikori arsenic the past antheral successful astatine No. 158.
The geographical proximity of Canberra to the season’s archetypal Major Australian Open possibly explains this gulf with Bengaluru, but the wide tract successful the Garden City is weaker compared to the erstwhile 2 editions arsenic well.
In 2025, Blake Ellis astatine No. 300 was the last nonstop introduction portion successful 2024 it was Giovanni Fonio astatine 279.
But this shouldn’t beryllium held against the event. Home Challengers are hosted to assistance section players, and shifting the contention to an aboriginal January slot from its accepted post-Australian Open model has seemingly resulted successful much Indians getting into the main draw.
When past year’s four-Challenger plaything began successful February successful Chennai, nary Indian, barring Nagal astatine No. 105, was eligible without a chaotic card. This clip successful Bengaluru, isolated from Nagal, Aryan Shah and Karan Singh – some ranked successful the 400s – are successful the last 32 connected merit.
Dhakshineswar Suresh, Manas Dhamne and section lad S.D. Prajwal Dev are the 3 wildcards, and connected Monday, Sidharth Rawat tin perchance articulation his countrymen arsenic a qualifier.
However, earlier they effort and scope for the title, determination is simply a dismal fig from the erstwhile play that requires rewriting – Indians finished with a 1-13 win-loss grounds crossed the 4 Challengers.
There is frankincense a precocious barroom and a debased barroom to clear. It volition beryllium successful Indian tennis’ champion interests if some tin beryllium managed.
Qualifying archetypal circular (select results): Sidharth Rawat bt Nitinkumar Sinha 6-3, 7-5; Aziz Ouakaa (Tun) bt A. Vishal Balsekar 6-4, 7-6(3); Eero Vasa (Fin) bt Adil Kalyanpur 3-6, 6-3, 6-0; Arthur Reymond (Fra) bt Ramkumar Ramanathan 7-5, 7-6(3); Dominik Palan (Cze) bt Dev Javia 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(5); Niels Visker (Ned) bt Manish Sureshkumar 6-3, 6-3.
