'Always fun playing at home': Sumit Nagal, Mukund Sasikumar delighted to play tennis events in India again

Both players made it through to the main draw of men's singles in Chennai Open 2023 after going through the qualifiers.

Sumit Nagal and local lad Mukund Sasikumar qualified through to the main draw of the ATP Chennai Open Challenger 2023 after winning their respective matches in the qualifiers. Another Indian in the fray, Digvijay Pratap Singh, however, couldn’t cross the final hurdle despite putting in a valiant effort. He lost in straight sets (2-6, 6-7) against Australia's James McCabe in the second round of singles qualifiers. Sumit Nagal and Mukund Sasikuamar will join wildcards Prajnesh Gunneswaran and Ramkumar Ramanathan in the main draw.

Nagal beat JiSung Nam of South Korea in straight sets (6-1, 6-3). Nam, in the first-round qualifiers, had defeated fourth-seed Perrichard and was hopeful of putting in a good fight. But Nagal never allowed the Korean to settle, playing with an attacking intent throughout the match. The longest game in the match was the sixth game in the second set which was held for close to 15 minutes. Nagal went on to win the match.

Sumit Nagal shared his thoughts post the win that took him into the singles main draw of Chennai Open 2023.

Thoughts on winning the qualifiers

Nagal defeated Calum Puttergill and JiSung Nam in straight sets in the qualifiers to advance to the main round.

“It is always fun to play in India. We do not get to play many matches here due to the pandemic. I played well in the qualifiers and was confident of winning.”

How tough is it to play in this hot and humid conditions

Chennai is always known for its hot and humid climate and few foreign players are facing challenges of getting used to the conditions.

“Everyone knows about the conditions in Chennai and yeah it was hot and humid today. We get very few opportunities to play in home challengers, so need to get used to the conditions. I came to Chennai on Wednesday and started adapting and now I am getting used to it.”

You lost the last two challengers in the qualifying rounds. How challenging was it to overcome and start fresh?

Sumit Nagal didn't start 2023 on a positive note in terms of results. He was knocked out in the opening round of the ATP 250 Maharashtra Open and also lost in the qualifying rounds of the next two challenger events.

“I was unlucky to lose one match as I had match points but couldn't convert. Know that am playing well but do not want to get negative due to the results. I would like to take the positives and confidence going further.”

How tough is it to get back from injuries and start fresh?

Nagal has been facing injury issues for the past two years which has drastically reduced his singles rankings.

“It depends on what type of injury you have. For me, it was the hip that took me a while to recover. Could not play for seven to eight months due to injury. Then the recovery took an additional five months (and also to build trust) which is approximately 14 months. That was a tough phase, but now I am feeling 100 per cent fit and have trust in my body.”

Takes on playing the doubles 

“Sometimes it is fun playing the doubles along with a friend. Sasikumar (Mukund) is a good friend of mine and last week we had a talk regarding playing doubles and registered our names.”

Mukund Sasikumar Speaks

Apart from Nagal, Mukund also won the second-round qualifiers against the No. 1 seed Jason Jung in three sets and made it to the main draw. Sasikumar beat compatriot Sidharth Rawat 6-4, 6-2 in the first round of qualifiers.

How does it feel to come back and play at home?

“The first thing is that I get to stay with my family during the tournament which I experience rarely throughout the year and the second is to meet my friends on tour with the vibes they give me throughout the day. The tennis part really doesn't matter because it is my job to perform so it really doesn't as the sport remains the same. What happens outside the court makes the difference and that can have an indirect connection to performing better.”

Thoughts on the match

Sasikumar lost the first set and was trailing (3-4) in the second set. Jason Jung didn't look comfortable in the second set and had to take a medical timeout. Sasikuamar took advantage and made the most out of it winning the match comfortably.

“I had a lot of luck on my side and don't know what happened to him when the lead was 4-3 with the match in his favour. After the end of the match, he said of feeling dizzy but during the match, I thought he hurt his leg.

"On the other side, I was unlucky in the first set as there were a few wrong calls. Mistakes can happen as umpires are also humans and the decision could have gone either way too. I persisted much more than I usually do which paid off which always cannot be in my favour.”

How difficult is it to play singles and doubles simultaneously?

Mukund Sasikumar will be partnering with Sumit Nagal in the men’s doubles and is set to take on Rungkat/Hsu in the round of 16.

“There are guys who do it but it is physically challenging. It is an advantage to play along with a friend (Sumit Nagal) which relaxes me during the match. I would play with him even if money wasn’t offered as I like his energy and have been seeing each other for the past 15 years coming a long way. Doubles for me this week or partnering with an Indian is always good.”