Indian tennis ace Sumit Nagal went down to South Korea's Seong-chan Hong after putting up a spirited fight in the final qualifying round of Indian Wells Masters here. The 26-year-old Nagal lost 6-2, 2-6, 6-7 (4-7) on Tuesday. Earlier, Nagal brushed past the challenge of American wildcard Stefan Dostanic in straight sets in his first outing at the Indian Wells Masters on Monday. India’s Sumit Nagal Wins Against Stefan Dostanic on Indian Wells Open 2024 Debut.

The India No. 1 singles player beat Dostanic in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 in the first round of the qualifying.  And while Nagal may have lost to Hong, he assured himself of 10 ranking points and USD 14,400 prize money by making the final qualifying round.

Nagal recently made history by becoming the first Indian men's singles player in a decade to advance to the second round of the Australian Open. He also won the Chennai Challengers title, entering the top-100 rankings following the triumph. However, he suffered reverses in Pune and Dubai.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)