Chennai Open 2026: Poonacha-Isaro to face Sasikumar-Clarke in all-India assured doubles final
(Courtesy : Chennai Open)
Second seed Federico Agustin Gomez and fourth seed Ilia Simakin to clash in singles semi-finals
An Indian player is guaranteed to lift the doubles title at the Chennai Open 2026 ATP Challenger Men’s International Tennis Championship, currently underway at the SDAT Tennis Stadium, Nungambakkam, after top seeds Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha/Pruchya Isaro set up a final showdown against the unseeded pairing of Mukund Sasikumar/Jay Clarke.
Poonacha/Isaro, fresh off their Grand Slam debut at the Australian Open last month, combined to defeat the all-Indian pair of S.D. Prajwal Dev/Nitin Kumar Sinha 6-4, 6-1 on Friday to book their place in the final.
The top seeds led 5-1 in the opening set before Dev/Sinha mounted a mini-comeback to narrow the gap to 5-4. However, the Indo-Thai pair closed out the set 6-4 before sealing the match comfortably in the second.
“I believe we played more aggressive and with lot of energy today. We were able to get the lead at the start but we dozed off a bit which gave them a chance to come back but we are happy we closed it,” Poonacha said after the win.
“I know them (Dev/Sinha) pretty well, both are close friends. I would say they didn’t play as well as they usually do, just wasn’t their day.”
Poonacha will now be gunning for his seventh ATP Challenger doubles title, while Isaro will be aiming for his fourth. The pair have previously won one ATP Challenger title together — in Shanghai in 2025.
“I love to play in Chennai,” Isaro said after the win. “I feel I am playing in my second home and want to thank everyone for supporting us. I would like to come back to play here again and again. We played super good today and I hope we get better and better as a team.”
In the second doubles semifinal, the Indo-British combination of Sasikumar/Clarke saved a match point en route to a thrilling 7-6, 4-6, 13-11 win over Felix Gill/Alastair Gray.
Also Read: Delhi Open 2026: Five young stars to watch in ATP Challenger event at DLTA
Earlier in the day, second seed Federico Agustin Gomez of Argentina advanced to the singles semifinals after a 6-3, 6-4 win over Kazakhstan’s Denis Yevseyev.
The 29-year-old Argentine, a four-time ATP Challenger Tour singles champion, will next face fourth seed Ilia Simakin for a place in the final.
For the second day in a row, Simakin was taken the distance in a three-set battle. After defeating Philip Sekulic 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 on Thursday, the 22-year-old needed close to two-and-a-half hours to overcome big-serving Petr Bar Biryukov 7-6, 4-6, 7-5.
Simakin is currently on a nine-match winning streak after clinching his maiden ATP Challenger singles title in Thailand last week.
In the other singles semifinal, sixth seed Frederico Ferreira Silva of Portugal will take on unseeded Pole Maks Kasnikowski. Ferreira Silva, who is chasing his first ATP Challenger singles title, registered a comfortable 6-2, 6-4 win over Greece’s Ioannis Xilas and is yet to drop a set this week.
Kasnikowski, a two-time ATP Challenger Tour champion, came through with a 6-3, 7-6 win over Switzerland’s Luca Castelnuovo and has also won all his matches in straight sets this week.
Singles Quarter-Finals
[2] Federico Agustin Gomez (ARG) def. Denis Yevseyev (KAZ) 6-3, 6-4
[4] Ilia Simakin def. Petr Bar Biryukov 7-6, 4-6, 7-5
[6] Frederico Ferreira Silva (POR) def. Ioannis Xilas (GRE) 6-2, 6-4
Maks Kasnikowski (POL) def. Luca Castelnuovo (SUI) 6-3, 7-6 (5)
Doubles Semi-Finals
[1] Pruchya Isaro (THA)/ Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha (IND) def. [3] S D Prajwal Dev (IND)/ Nitin Kumar Sinha (IND) 6-4, 6-1
Jay Clarke (GBR)/ Mukund Sasikumar (IND) def. Felix Gill (GBR)/ Alastair Gray (GBR) 7-6 (7), 4-6, 13-11
The main draw consists of 32 players – 21 direct acceptances, 2 Special exempts, 3 wild cards, 6 qualifiers. Qualifying consists of 24 players with 4 wild cards. The prize money for the event is USD 63,000/- (Rs.60 lakhs).
Prize Money for Singles Winner is US Dollars 9,500 Indian rupees 8,64,500 .and will get 50 ranking points, while the Runner-Up will receive US Dollars 5,500 (Rs 5,00,500 and will get 25 ranking points.
Double pair winners will receive US Dollars 2,980 (Rs 2,71,180 and Runners-Up USD 1,740 (Rs 1,58,340). The Chennai Open is the first of a series of ATP Challenger events to be held in India with events in Delhi and Pune to follow.
Who will play the doubles final at the Chennai Open 2026?
Top seeds Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha and Pruchya Isaro will take on the unseeded Indo-British pair of Mukund Sasikumar and Jay Clarke in the final.
How did Poonacha and Isaro reach the final?
The top seeds defeated the Indian duo of S.D. Prajwal Dev and Nitin Kumar Sinha 6-4, 6-1 in the semi-finals.
Is an Indian guaranteed to win the doubles title?
Yes, with Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha and Mukund Sasikumar on opposite sides of the final, an Indian player is assured of lifting the doubles trophy.
Who are the singles semi-finalists?
Federico Agustin Gomez will face Ilia Simakin, while Frederico Ferreira Silva takes on Maks Kasnikowski in the other semi-final.
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Alex graduated in mass communication in 2016 and has been covering global sports for Khel Now since then. He is covering sports tech, igaming, sports betting and casino domain from 2017.