💙Qualifier Hynek Barton caused a massive upset in the Bengaluru Open in Bengaluru on Tuesday by knocking out top seed Vit Kopriva in a round of 32 clash, even as the India players, including Ramkumar Ramanathan, suffered reverses. ()
Czech Republic's Barton came from a set down to shock compatriot Kopriva 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in a tightly contested match, which lasted a little over two hours on Court 2 at the KSLTA Tennis Stadium.
🐻Indian teen sensation Manas Dhamne's journey came to an end in the first round, despite him putting up a brave fight against qualifier Petr Bar Biryukov.
🎉Dhamne lost the first set 3-6 but came roaring back to win the second by the same scoreline. The 17-year-old then pushed Biryukov to a tiebreaker in the third, but couldn't find an answer to his lethal first serve and succumbed to a defeat by margin of 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(3).
♉Elsewhere, Karan Singh's campaign ended in the first round of the main draw as he fell to Jurij Rodionov in a hard-fought 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(3) battle. The Indian qualifier showcased resilience, forcing a decider after levelling the match, but the Austrian held his nerves in the final-set tiebreak.
♒Meanwhile, wild card Ramkumar put up a strong challenge against seventh seed Shintaro Mochizuki, pushing the Japanese star to the brink in both sets before bowing out 7-6(3), 7-5.
Organised by the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA), the Bengaluru Open is an ATP ꦓChallenger 125 tournament with a prize pool of USD 200,000. The champion of this hard-court tournament will earn 125 ATP ranking points.
𒉰Just days after teaming up for a semifinal run at the Delhi Open, friends and countrymen Barton and Kopriva faced off for a spot in the pre-quarterfinals here.
♏Familiar with each other's game, they matched stride for stride in a gritty first set until Kopriva capitalised on Barton's unforced errors to break in seventh game and take the lead.
ꦕBarton, however, turned the match around, breaking Kopriva late in the second set and early in the third to seal a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 comeback win.
🅰In other results, former world No 17 Bernard Tomic mounted an impressive comeback, recovering from a set down to defeat qualifier Ilia Simakin 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4. Tomic's Australian compatriot Tristan Schoolkate, the second seed, survived an early scare, battling past Khumoyun Sultanov 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-3 to reach the next round.
🎃Recent Delhi Open singles winner and fifth seed Kyrian Jacquet suffered a surprise defeat, falling to unseeded James McCabe 6-7(8), 6-1, 6-2.
