Davis Cup qualifiers: India trail South Korea 0-2 after Day 1 as Nagal loses thriller - Highlights

Second Singles rubber underway!

Sumit Nagal and Hyeon Chung are on court for the second singles rubber of India’s Davis Cup tie against South Korea. India trail 0-1 after Dhakshineswar Suresh lost to Soonwoo Kwon in the opening rubber.

Second Singles rubber: Sumit Nagal in action

India’s top-ranked singles player Sumit Nagal, world No. 247, will be up against former Australian Open semi-finalist Chung Hyeon.

First Singles rubber: Dhakshineswar lost 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, India trail 0-1.

Dhakshineswar Suresh suffered his first Davis Cup defeat as South Korea’s Kwon Soon-woo won a hard-fought contest. Until now, the Indian held a perfect 5-0 win-loss record in his Davis Cup ties.

In the third anf final set, Dhakshineswar refused to go down without a fight, saving a match point in the ninth game with an ace before holding serve. Kwon, who had been the better of the two players on the day, was made to wait before eventually serving out the match at 6-4.

India now trails 0-1 in the Davic Cup qualifier tie against South Korea. 

Score: Dhakshineswar lost 6-3, 3-6, 4-6.

Third set: Dhakshineswar on backfoot

Dhakshineswar Suresh tested Kwon Soon-woo in the fourth game of the third set. A clever backhand slice proved too good for the Korean, but Kwon hit back immediately in the next game.

The Korean earned three break points, with Suresh saving two before Kwon converted the third. Suresh is now trailing 2-3 in the third set.

Score: Dhakshineswar 3-6, 6-3, 2-4 Kwon

Third set in progress

Second Set: Kwon Soon-woo take the second set 6-3

The second set has been a long, hard-fought one for Dhakshineswar Suresh. He was broken in the first and sixth games. He held on to his serves but he was challeged again in the eight game. It was particularly gruelling, with Suresh’s serve pushed to the limit as the game went through six deuces. The Indian eventually held his serve and Kwon Soon-woo went on to serve the second set at 6-3.

Both players have now won a set each with the Indian taking the first and Korean taking the second.  

Second Set: Dhakshineswar Suresh survives break in fourth game

Dhakshineswar Suresh is under pressure in the fourth game, facing two break points. The Indian digs deep to save both and force deuce. He then earns game point only to hand it back with a double fault.

Dhakshineswar Suresh gets another chance to close out the game with advantage on serve. The second set is evenly poised at 2-all.

First set: Dhakshineswar Suresh takes the first set 6-3

Dhakshineswar Suresh has taken the opening set with a break in the second game. The World No. 367 has shown plenty of composure against a much higher-ranked opponent in World No. 157 Kwon Soon-woo, and India now have the early advantage. 

First set: Dhakshineswar Suresh leads 5-2

After trailing 0-3, the Korean player is slowly recovering, winning two games in a row to make it 4-2. He even stretched Dhakshineswar to a 40-all in the seventh game before the Indian prevailed to hold serve. 

Dhakshineswar leads 5-2. Kwon Soon-woo to serve. 

First Set: Dhakshineswar Suresh leads 3-0.

Dhakshineswar Suresh begins on a positive note. He holds serve in the opening game and then earns two break points in the second game, converting the second to take a 2-0 lead in the first set.

The third game was another quick progression backed by heavy serves from the tall Indian.

Dhakshineswar Suresh leads 3-0 in first set.