Indian next-generation star Sumit Nagal claimed the ATP Buenos Aires Challenger event and become the first Indian to triumph on South American clay on Sunday after defeating Facundo Bagnis 6-4, 6-2 in the finals.
Recently, Sumit Nagal managed to enter a lot of undiscovered territories in Indian tennis. He became the first Indian to take a set off Roger Federer in the first round of the US Open 2019. He also reached two finals of the challenger events. However, Nagal believes that he is still not getting support as people are just ‘walking away’ when he needs support.
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However, the shortfall of monetary funds meant that he neither had the support of his coach nor the physio, who could help him recover from the grueling matches on the Argentinian clay as he suggested that it is too costly to travel with a coach.
“I was all alone here. No one was with me to help out. I couldn’t have my coach(Sascha Nensel) and trainer(Milos Galecic) traveling with me, as it’s tough to travel with a coach all the time, as it costs a lot,” Nagal said.
One way, it has been great that I have been playing good tennis but it’s not easy to do it and I’m really sad,” Nagal told PTI in Buenos Aires.
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Sumit Nagal’s victory at the ATP Challenger event in Argentina saw him jump to a career-best ranking of No.135 in the ATP rankings. However, Nagal explained that his path is still lonely despite having a good run at the 2019 US Open. The youngster also disclosed is sadness as nobody is stepping up to invest in the sport.
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“The path is lonely despite doing well at the US Open. I qualified at 22 and led a set against Roger Federer but it still has not made an impact anywhere. It’s really sad nobody is coming up to invest in tennis,” he concluded.