Tomas Machac was attacking against India’s Sumit Nagal from the first serves like second serves at one point during Sunday’s second set. Getting closer to the baseline with a fast hop and a stride inside, followed by a spectacular return winner. Off the forehand first. Off the backhand after that. On Melbourne’s fast-hard courts, a one-sided match is typically indicated by a top player leaping on the other’s unthreatening serves.
And for a significant portion of Sumit Nagal’s Australian Open first-round match, it was. Nagal lost to 26th seed Machac of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-1, 7-5 in a two-hour and five-minute match played Sunday at Melbourne Park’s 1573 Arena. Additionally, it put a stop to India’s Australian Open singles challenge. Nagal defeated then-world No. 27 Alexander Bublik last year at the season-opening Grand Slam.
He became the first Indian player to defeat a seeded opponent in men’s singles since Ramesh Krishnan in 1989. That triumph and performance in Australia facilitated the Indian’s maiden appearance in the top 100 ATP rankings. But on Sunday, the world No. 91 faced a 24-year-old who had defeated Grigor Dimitrov and Carlos Alcaraz on the tour since last October. Even though Nagal had a strong start to the match.
India’s Lone Tennis Star Fails
Machac easily won the first set without encountering a single break point. Showcasing the class from the current world No. 25. His serve, which is still being worked on, was broken twice after he dropped just two points in his early service games. There was a chance for Nagal to rally and force a fourth set. The Czech, however, won the following four games in a row to guarantee his place in the second round.
He was motivated to end the match in straight sets. Despite making more unforced mistakes (33 to 20), Machac nonetheless recorded 38 victories to Nagal’s 19. Sumit Nagal will lose 40 ranking points as a result of the first-round defeat, putting him in danger of dropping out of the top 100.
