Pune, February 23 – Former top-50-ranked player Ilya Ivashka pulled off the day's upset, defeating top seed Federico Agustin Gomez in a thrilling three-set battle in the opening round of the Maha Open ATP Challenger 75 Men's Tennis Championship at the Mhalunge Balewadi Tennis Stadium at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune on Monday.
The tournament is organized by the Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association (MSLTA) in association with the Department of Sports and Youth Services, Government of Maharashtra, PCMC, PMC, and PMDTA, and sponsored by the Pune Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (PMRDA).
Ivashka dominated the first set 6-1 before Gomez rallied to win the second by the same score. The deciding set went to a tense tie-break, where Ivashka held his nerve to seal a 6-1, 1-6, 7-6(7) victory in a match lasting 2 hours and 25 minutes, securing his place in the second round.
Japan's Yuta Shimizu produced a clinical performance to defeat Italy's Lorenzo Carboni 6-4, 6-4 in straight sets. Britain's Alastair Gray battled past Poland's Daniel Michalski 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in a hard-fought contest. Croatia's Duje Ajdukovic also comfortably advanced with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Korea's Shin San-hui.
The two Indian qualifiers, Takuya Kumasaka of Japan and S.D. Prajwal Dev, had a tough time, with Kumasaka defeating Dev 6-4, 6-2, while Tung-Lin Wu of Chinese Taipei defeated Digvijaypratap Singh 7-5, 6-4 in the final round of qualifying matches.
Other qualifiers included Maks Kasnikowski, Masamichi Imamura, Yusuke Takahashi, and Mitsuki Wei Kang Leong of Malaysia. With several closely contested matches and a major upset on the opening day, the ATP Challenger 75 event promises more high-quality action in the days ahead as players vie for crucial ranking points and the coveted title in Pune.
Results (first round):
Singles:
Ilya Ivashka bt Federico Agustin Gomez[1](ARG)6-1, 1-6, 7-6(7);
Yuta Shimizu (JPN) bt Lorenzo Carboni (ITA)6-4, 6-4;
Alastair Gray (GBR) bt Daniel Michalski (POL) 6-3, 3-6, 6-3;
Duje Ajdukovic (CRO) bt Sanhui Shin (KOR) 6-2, 6-4;
Final Qualifying round:
Takuya Kumasaka [7] (JPN) bt S.D. Prajwal Dev (IND) 6-4, 6-2;
Tung-Lin Wu [2] (TPE) bt Digvijaypratap Singh (IND) 7-5, 6-4;
Maks Kasnikowski [1] (POL) bt Egor Agafonov 6-4, 6-4;
Masamichi Imamura [11] (JPN) bt David Jorda Sanchis [3] (ESP) 6-4, 6-3;
Mitsuki Wei Kang Leong (MAS) bt Tsung-Hao Huang [8] (TPE) 6-2, 6-3;
Yusuke Takahashi [10] (JPN) bt Alexander Binda [6] (ITA) 6-4, 6-3.
