India No 1 Sumit Nagal exited the men’s singles event at Wimbledon 2024 in the first round on Monday.
Nagal lost 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 4-6 to Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic in a match that lasted two hours and 48 minutes.
It was an inconsistent showing by the Indian that saw him lose the opening set on a surface that has tested Nagal quite frequently. However, he didn’t let that hold him back as he resurged to cover the court well in the second set and level the match at 1 set-all, winning the second set 6-3.
While this might have sparked a comeback from Nagal, Kecmanovic ultimately committed less unforced errors than the Indian and surged to a 2-1 lead in the third set, winning it 6-3.
The world No 73 raced ahead to a 5-1 lead in the fourth set, but Nagal fought back to win three consecutive points and make the scoreline 5-4. However, Kecmanovic held on to win his fourth match point and seal the match 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in his favour.
Nagal will also compete in men’s doubles alongside partner Dusan Lajovic from Serbia. The other Indians featuring in the grass court Grand Slam are Rohan Bopanna and his Australian partner Matthew Ebden, along with N Sriram Balaji and his British partner Luke Johnson.
