India's S.D. Prajwal Dev showed immense tenacity in carving a 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) win over compatriot Mukund Sasikumar to waltz into the singles semifinals of the Cycle Pure Agarbathi ITF Mysuru Open 2023 at the Mysore Tennis Club on Friday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Mysuru lad Prajwal, a world No 1027, came as the underdog against fourth-seeded Mukund, a world No 401, but dished out a performance that masked the difference in ranking.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Cutting back to the match, once Mukund won the first set 6-1, a centre for him seemed the most possible outcome. But Prajwal showed massive dollops of fighting spirit despite being down by a break in the second set to win it 7-5 eventually.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Both the players battled neck-and-neck in the decider as it stretched to the tie-break. Prajwal played the crucial points a lot better in the tie-break to come out as the winner after a battle that lasted precisely 3 hours.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"It was a very close match. I was down a set and a break in the second set but I stayed tough and I wanted to stay as close as possible to him and take my chances. I am happy that I was able to do that in the second set. I was again down in the third set but I did well to get back to the match and I am happy to get over the line," said Prajwal after the match.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"In semis, I need to stay solid with my serve, ground shots and take my chances and probably attack a little bit more. If I serve well, I can do other aspects of the game well," he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In the semis, Prajwal will face George Loffhagen. Earlier, unseeded Loffhagen of Britain continued his winning spree in the tournament, beating India's Karan Singh 7-6(4), 6-3.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
"It was a good match and I am happy about the way I served. He was a tough opponent, especially during the long rallies, so I am happy to get through the match," said Loffhagen after the match.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
In the doubles, the top-seeded Indian pair of B. Rithvik Choudary and Niki Poonacha strolled past fourth seeds and compatriots Parikshit Somani and Manish Sureshkumar 6-3, 6-3 to enter the final.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Later, Mukund Sasikumar made up for his defeat in singles when he along with Vishnu Vardhan reached the doubles semifinals, defeating Indian duo Faisal Qamar and Fardeen Quamar 7-6(7), 3-6, 10-7 in a match carried over from Thursday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Results (Singles, QF): S.D. Prajwal Dev (IND) beat (4) Mukund Sasikumar (IND) 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(4); (2) Oliver Crawford (USA) beat Florent Bax (FRA) 6-4, 6-0; George Loffhagen (GBR) beat Karan Singh (IND) 7-6 (4), 6-3; (8) Ellis Blake (AUS) beat (3) Orlov Vladyslav (UKR) 7-6 (4), 6-4<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Results: Doubles (Quarterfinals, Carried over from Thursday): Mukund Sasikumar (IND)\/Vishnu Vardhan (IND) beat Faisal Qamar (IND)\/Fardeen Quamar (IND) 7-6(7), 3-6, 10-7<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Results (Singles, QF): S.D. Prajwal Dev (IND) beat (4) Mukund Sasikumar (IND) 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(4); (2) Oliver Crawford (USA) beat Florent Bax (FRA) 6-4, 6-0; George Loffhagen (GBR) beat Karan Singh (IND) 7-6 (4), 6-3; (8) Ellis Blake (AUS) beat (3) Orlov Vladyslav (UKR) 7-6 (4), 6-4<\/p>\r\n\r\n