Sumit Nagal Vs Tomas Machac, Australian Open: Indian Crashes Out In First Round

A profligate Sumit Nagal's Australian Open campaign ended in a straight-set defeat against world number 25 Tomas Machac in the men's singes event in Melbourne on Sunday. (Day 1 Blog | More Tennis News)

The top Indian singles player failed to capitalise o𝐆n his chances, losing 3-6 1-6 5-7 to his opponent form Czech Republic, who dominated with his superior consistency and precision.

Nagal, ranked༒ 91st, star♎ted the match confidently, dropping just two points in his first three service games.

However, a double fault and a string of forced and unforced♒ errors saw him lose his serve in the seventh and ninth games, handing Machac the opening set.

In the second set, Nagal had an♐ early chance to bℱreak Machac in the opening game, but the Czech player held firm, saving the breakpoint.

From there, Machac seized control, wrapping u🏅p the set in just 36 min🍬utes as Nagal struggled to keep up.

Trailing by two sets, Nagal mounted a spirited f✅ightback in the third set, securing an early break and racing to a 3-0 lead, which he extended to 5-3.

However, a flurry of errors, including anot𓃲her double fault, allowed Machac to st🐭age a comeback with a crucial break.

The Czech player capitalised on the momentum, closing out the match and ending Nagal's campai🉐gn.

Last year, Nagal made headlines by reaching the Australian Open main draw through the✃ qualifiers and stunning higher-ranked Alexander Bublik in the first round before bowing out in the second.

This time, his earl𓃲y exit against Machac marks the end of India's campaign in the singles ☂event.

However, Indian represen📖tation continues in the doubles category.

Last year’s men’s dou🌃bles champion Rohan Bopanna, who clinched the title with Australia's Matthew Ebden, will pair up with Colombia’s Nicolas Barrientos this year.

Other Indian plꦚayers in the doubles draw include Yuki Bhambri, N Sriram Balaji and Rithvik Bollipalli, who will compete with their respective partners.