Sumit Nagal wins sixth career ATP Challenger event title at Heilbronn Neckarcup 2024 tennis

Sumit Nagal won the men’s singles title at the Heilbronn Neckarcup 2024 ATP Challenger tennis tournament in Germany on Sunday.

The Indian tennis player, ranked 95th in the men’s singles world rankings, beat world No. 184 Alexander Ritschard of Switzerland in three sets 6-1, 6(5)-7(7), 6-3 in the final that lasted two hours and 22 minutes.

This was the sixth ATP Challenger triumph of Nagal’s career and the second of the year after the Chennai Open crown on home soil earlier this year.

The 26-year-old Nagal, who is currently the best-ranked Indian singles player, has won four ATP Challenger titles since 2023 and the win in Heilbronn was his fourth title on clay tennis courts.

It was Nagal who began the final on a positive note. He seized a 4-0 lead early in the first set and gave his opposition a tough time. Ritschard couldn’t keep up and the Indian tennis player secured the first set comfortably.

Seeded third, Nagal continued to dominate early on in the second set and opened up a 3-1 lead. However, this time, Ritschard clawed his way back and made it 4-4.

The two players were inseparable at 6-6 before Ritschard clinched a hard-fought tie-breaker to draw level.

The final set saw both players going toe-to-toe to take charge early on. The fourth game proved to be a tantalising affair as Ritschard saved seven break points to save his service game.

Nagal, however, broke his opponent to take a 4-2 lead. Although his Swiss opponent pulled one back to make it 4-3 and saved three match points in the final game, Nagal eventually wrapped up the match.

En route to the final, Nagal beat Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia in the opening round in three sets. He then defeated Spain’s Javier Barranco Cosano in the round of 16, Ivan Gakhov in the quarter-finals and fifth-seed Luca Van Assche of France in the semis, all in straight sets.