Nagal ready for the challenge
US OPEN Indian keen to make most of his maiden direct entry into the Grand Slam amid uncertainty
MUMBAI: Moments after defending champion Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawal from the US Open, a tweet on the tournament’s official handle said: “From Djokovic to Nagal, we break down the 2020 US Open men’s singles player field”. A few people—unaware of the Spaniard pulling out and of the top-ranked Indian player— replied to the tweet wondering if it was a misspelling.
Not quite. Sumit Nagal, ranked 127 in the world, squeezed in as the last man to get a direct entry into the men’s singles main draw of 128, which the organisers announced late on Tuesday after Nadal’s decision. The 22-year-old has never got a direct main draw ticket for a Grand Slam, and it would have been touch and go even this time had a host of top players not backed out of the event scheduled in New York from August 31 owing to the pandemic.
With organisers culling qualifiers this year to limit the number of players, Nagal is the only Indian singles player set to participate in the controversial Slam which has been shrouded in uncertainty and high-profile withdrawals due to travel reservations. India’s next best, Prajnesh Gunneswaran at world No 132, might get a look in if more players decide to pull out.
Nagal confirmed should the hard-court Major go ahead, he will travel to New York to play but not without apprehensions about travel and being in a biobubble on arrival.
“Let’s just say I’m not too comfortable (with the travel),” Nagal said over the phone from Germany, where he is training. “At the same time I don’t have too many choices. You’ve got to understand and take what you have. I can’t expect too many things. This is how it’s going to be and I’m going to use this opportunity and try to do the best.”
The US Open has been a topic of hot debate since its decision to go ahead. Many stars—from men’s world No 2 Nadal to women’s top-ranked Ashleigh Barty to the outspoken Nick Kyrgios to former champion Stan Wawrinka—have chosen to stay home due to concerns around the Covid-19 situation and the spiralling cases in the USA.
Nagal said he doesn’t have the luxury to pick and choose tournaments like the top pros.
“I can understand people pulling out. All the people who have pulled out are big names. It’s two very different things for them and for me. I don’t have millions in my account where I can just not play for a long time and it won’t matter. I have to survive; I have to pay my bills. And in order to do that, I need to play in whatever tournaments come my way and make some money,” Nagal said.
Currently training at the Nensel Academy in Germany, Nagal plans to get back to competitive mode on the Tour at the Prague Open, the clay-court ATP Challenger, starting August 17, before flying to the US. Yet, he is aware that with tournaments on the Tour getting cancelled due to the Covid-19 scenario, playing in New York is not a given.
“There’s still every chance that the US Open might get cancelled. I mean nothing is 100 per cent sure right now looking at how things are shaping up across the world. We still have to keep a lot of things in mind, and it’s definitely not easy right now,” he said.
Incidentally, it was in last year’s US Open that the promising Nagal shot to fame, winning all his three qualifying matches to earn a date with Roger Federer in the first round—which was Nagal’s maiden Slam show—on the Arthur Ashe Stadium. The youngster is kicked about returning to the place in which he took a set off the Swiss great, this time without having to grind through the qualifiers.
“I’ve never made a direct entry into the main draw of a Slam, so it’s definitely pleasing. It’s unfortunate what is happening with the pandemic but still playing a Slam is something I wouldn’t want to miss, especially since I’ve only played one so far. I’m feeling good about my game.”