New Delhi, February 19 India's top tennis player, Sumit Nagal, was eliminated from the ATP Delhi Open after losing to sixth-seeded Federico Cina of Italy in the second round here on Thursday.
In the doubles draw, top seeds Siddhant Banthia (India) and Alexander Donski (Bulgaria) advanced to the quarterfinals.
Cina, an 18-year-old ranked No. 225 in the world, broke Nagal in the opening game and maintained the advantage to win the first set 6-4. The Italian then raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set and appeared set to advance to the last eight.
However, Nagal, ranked No. 297, saved three match points in the seventh game and reduced the deficit to 5-4. Cina remained composed and held serve in the 10th game to secure a 6-4, 6-4 victory in one hour and 40 minutes.
"Nagal is someone who has played in the main draw of the Grand Slams. So, I am very happy about this win," Cina said after the win.
"He is a tough player. He was also playing at home, which made it difficult. But I am very happy to win this match. It was tough because he was 5-4, and the crowd was also getting excited. It was tough, but I served well in the last game."
Third seed Jay Clarke and fifth seed Oliver Crawford, both from Great Britain, and eighth seed Rio Noguchi of Japan, won their matches in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals.
Second seed Rei Sakamoto of Japan came from 3-0 down in the final set to score a 1-6, 6-1, 6-4 win over Great Britain's Alastair Gray, while seventh seed Daniel Michalski of Poland was upset by Belgium's Michael Geerts 7-6(8), 6-4.
In the doubles draw, the top-seeded duo of Banthia and Donski advanced to the quarterfinals with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Francis Casey Alcantara and Courtney John Lock.
"It was good. Me and Alex have played a lot last year, and it was good to get him back on the court with me this year and start the season really strongly," Banthia said after the win.
"I thought the chemistry was always there, and we have both improved as individuals and as players. We understand each other's games, and having such a dominant performance in the first round gives us a lot of confidence going forward."
Also reaching the last eight was the Indian wildcard pairing of Divij Sharan and Karan Singh, who defeated Bulgaria’s Dimitar Kuzmanov and Kazakhstan’s Denis Yevseyev 7-6(5), 6-4.
Somdev Devvarman remains the only home singles champion in the tournament’s history, having won back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015.
There have also been all-Indian doubles champions twice in the past, with Saketh Myneni-Sanam Singh and Yuki Bhambri-Mahesh Bhupathi lifting the trophy in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
