Delhi Open 2026: Sumit Nagal advances to second round

India's top-ranked player Sumit Nagal advanced to the second round of the men’s singles event at the 2026 Delhi Open ATP 75 Challenger event on Tuesday.

Nagal, ranked No. 297 in the world, broke Spain’s David Jorda Sanchis in the opening game of the first set and maintained his advantage to take it 6-3.

The second set proved more competitive, with both players holding serve until the Indian secured the decisive break in the 11th game and served out the match 6-3, 7-5 in one hour and 27 minutes.

“I'm really happy with the win. It's my first win in Delhi. It's been a long due in my tennis matches in Delhi,” Nagal said. “It feels great to play at home. It was an incredible crowd and I look forward to playing on Thursday".

Nagal’s win was the lone positive result in singles for the Indian contingent, with 18-year-old Manas Dhamne, qualifier Manish Sureshkumar and wildcard entrant Digvijay Singh all bowing out in their opening-round matches in close straight-set defeats.

Nagal will be aiming to become the first Indian singles winner at the Delhi Open since Somdev Devvarman, who remains the only home singles champion in the tournament’s history. Devvarman won back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015.

India has also produced all-Indian doubles champions twice in the past, with Saketh Myneni/Sanam Singh and Yuki Bhambri/Mahesh Bhupathi lifting the trophy in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

Meanwhile, the day also produced a major upset as top seed Dane Sweeny of Australia was knocked out in his opening-round match by Kazakhstan’s Beibit Zhukayev.

Zhukayev, ranked No. 292 in the world, came from a set down to beat top seed and World No. 134 Dane Sweeny 6-7 (6), 6-2, 6-2.

The Australian had entered the tournament after a strong start to the 2026 season, having qualified for and reached the second round of the Australian Open, and winning an ATP Challenger 75 title in Brisbane.

Second seed Rei Sakamoto progressed to the Round of 16 after defeating Chennai Open champion Frederico Ferreira Silva 6-2, 6-2 in the first round.

Great Britain’s Jay Clarke, the third seed, also advanced with a hard-fought 7-6, 6-4 win over Polish qualifier Maks Kasnikowski to register his first win of the season.