Bengaluru Open: Sumit Nagal Faces Defeat Against Stephano Napolitano In Semifinals

India's top seed Sumit Nagal's energetic run at the Bengaluru Open came to an end on Saturday after he was outclassed by Italy's Stephano Napolitano. Sumit Nagal lost in the semifinals at the KSLTA Tennis Stadium by 7-6(2), 6-4. Nagal, who won the Chennai Open ATP Challenger last week, failed to impress at the Bengaluru Open.

The elite tennis tournament, Bengaluru Open, is organized by the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA) and its final match will be played on February 18, 2024.

At the beginning, it was all in favor of 26-year-old Nagal as he started with a 4-1 lead, but then Napolitano bounced back strongly. The Italian did not miss any chance to score and saved a couple of break points with his good serves. He also broke Nagal's serve to launch a counterattack on the home favorite.

In the ninth game, Napolitano overtook Nagal, but the second-seeded Indian quickly retaliated with a break in the subsequent game, leading to a tiebreak. Ultimately, it was the Italian who emerged victorious in the tiebreak, marking Nagal's first set loss in nine matches.

The second set unfolded with equal intensity, as Nagal seized the initiative by breaking Napolitano's serve in the fifth game. Despite this setback, the Italian swiftly leveled the score at 3-3 in the subsequent game. With momentum shifting in Napolitano's favor, Nagal found himself under pressure during his serves in the eighth game. Nevertheless, he managed to fend off a couple of breakpoints, keeping himself in contention.

However, Napolitano eventually broke Nagal's serves two games later, dashing India's hopes in the singles category. The Italian is now set to face South Korea's Seongchan Hong in the final, who defeated Spain's Oriol Roca Batalla 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the other semifinal match.