Following Prajnesh Gunneswaran in 2019, Sumit Nagal became the first male Indian qualifier for the main draw of the French Open.
Sumit Nagal, the top-seeded singles player in India, faced a challenging first round at the French Open and will play world no. 18 Karen Khachanov of Russia on Sunday. Global No. 94 Nagal’s steady performances on the tour won him a direct entry into the Grand Slam main draw. He became the first male Indian qualifier for the main draw of the French Open since 2019’s Prajnesh Gunneswaran.But Nagal hasn’t been playing at his best before the clay Grand Slam. Before skipping the Madrid and Rome Masters, he was defeated by Holger Rune in the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters.
Later this month, the 26-year-old withdrew in the first round of the Geneva Open and the Bordeaux Challenger.
Khachanov, who is ranked 18th, however, made it to the quarterfinals the previous year. In addition to his remarkable 21-7 record this season, he won the Qatar Open 250 in February.
