Sumit Nagal, Ankita Raina advance to second round of Australian Open 2024 qualifiers

Sumit Nagal faces Edward Winter of Australia in next round.

Sumit Nagal and Ankita Raina, India’s top-ranked singles players, moved a step closer to the main draw of the Australian Open 2024 with hard-fought wins in the first round of the qualifiers on Wednesday and Tuesday.

Nagal, who is ranked 122nd in the world, defeated France’s Geoffrey Blancaneaux 6-3, 7-5 in an hour and 46 minutes. The 26-year-old Indian displayed his dominance with his powerful serve and aggressive baseline game, while Blancaneaux made 32 unforced errors and could not convert any of his four break points.

Nagal, who was part of the Main Draw last year, will face Australian wildcard Edward Winter in the second round on Thursday at Show Court Arena. Winter, ranked 753 in the world, defeated Franco Agamenone of Italy 6-3, 6-4 in his opening match.

Nagal gained an early advantage in the opening set by breaking Blancaneaux’s serve and consolidating it with a 3-1 lead. Blancaneaux could not find a way to break back and Nagal cruised to take the first set. The second set was a nail-biter as Blancaneaux fought hard to stay in the match.

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At 5-5, it seemed that the set would be decided by a tie-break. But then, Nagal struck the final blow by earning his second and crucial break of serve in the match.

Nagal was impressive with his first serve, winning over 80% percent of the points behind it. Blancaneaux was hampered by 32 unforced errors, nearly double the amount of Nagal’s 20. Blancaneaux displayed some glimpses of his potential with his serves and aces but they were not enough to challenge Nagal.

On Tuesday Ankita Raina, who is ranked 189th in the world, also had to battle hard to overcome Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (10-4) in two hours and 49 minutes on Court 11.

Ankita Raina will face Sara Bejlek of Czech Republic in the second round on Wednesday. Czech Republic player defeated Himane Sakatsume of Japan 6-3, 6-1 in her first match.

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