India’s Sumit Nagal had made a dream start to his Grand Slam career.
Playing Roger Federer in the opening round of the US Open on 27 August, the 22-year-old from Haryana’s Jhajjar beat the 20-time Grand Slam champion 6-4 in the opening set.
He went on to lose 6-4, 1-6, 2-6, 4-6, but not without giving the 20-time Grand Slam champion a tough fight.
On Sunday, 29 September, Nagal defeated world number 166 Facundo Bagnis 6-4, 6-2 to bag the Buenos Aires Challenger Singles title, his first ATP Challenger Series title of the season and second overall.
Ranked 190 in the world, he has become only the fifth Indian player to feature in a Grand Slam singles main draw in this decade. Somdev Devvarman, Yuki Bhambri, Saketh Myneni and Prajnesh Gunneswaran are the only ones who have played at Tennis Majors.
He is also only the fourth Indian to win a set in the main draw of a Grand Slam in the last 20 years. What made it special was that it came against Federer. Only Somdev Devvarman, Yuki Bhambri and Saketh Myneni have managed to win a set in a Grand Slam main draw before Nagal, in the last two decades.
Nagal had also become only the sixth Indian player to win a junior Grand Slam title in 2015 when he won Wimbledon boys doubles with Nam Hoang Ly of Vietnam.
With Prajnesh also playing in this US Open, India had two players in the Grand Slam main draw for the first time since 1998 when legends Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi competed at the Wimbledon.
Nagal came into the US Open qualifiers confident, backed by terrific results during the clay court season. Consistent results on the Challenger Circuit meant that he broke into the top-200 for the first time in his career.
The 22-year-old defeated Brazil's Joao Menezes in the final qualifying round on 23 August to earn himself a chance to play a match every tennis player dreams of.
He had started the year outside the 350 bracket and had to overcome a difficult period, encountering injuries but came back strong.
India's Davis Cup captain Bhupathi, who was the first to spot Nagal's talent and took him under his wings to provide support, said it's a career defining moment for the Haryana boy.
"Nagal has been unlucky with injuries and has worked very hard to get back to this level. Playing Roger at the US Open at night is every qualifier's dream and nightmare and I think this experience will both be a confidence booster and a career defining moment for him," Bhupathi told PTI, reacting to Nagal's impending Grand Slam debut.
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