India’s Ankita Raina, Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan out early in US Open qualifiers

India’s Ankita Raina, Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan lost in the first round of their respective US Open 2021 qualifiers matches on Tuesday.

Ankita Raina, the world No. 193, went down 3-6, 6-2, 4-6 to the USA’s Jamie Loeb, who is ranked one spot below the 28-year old Indian.

While Ankita Raina broke serve five times in the nearly two-hour match, she could not hold her serve on six occasions, including three times in the decisive third set.

Ankita did save a match point at 15-40 but Loeb sealed the contest on the second chance.

Sumit Nagal, the world No. 165, was beaten 5-7, 6-4, 3-6 in two hours and 22 minutes by Argentina’s Juan Pablo Ficovich, ranked 81 spots below at 246.

The 24-year old Nagal had as many as 11 break points but could convert only two of those. Meanwhile, Ficovich, who sent down 16 aces compared to Nagal’s four, converted three out of his four break-point opportunities.

Nine of Ficovich’s aces came in the decisive third set, during which he also broke Nagal’s serve twice on the only two chances he had.

Ramkumar Ramanathan, the third Indian in the fray on the opening day of the qualifiers at Flushing Meadows, won the opening set before going down 6-4, 6-7 (1), 4-6 to Russia’s Evgeny Donskoy.

The 26-year old Ramkumar, ranked 204, sent down 10 aces but also committed 12 double faults against the world No. 152 Donskoy.

After taking the first set, Ramkumar faded in the second-set tie-breaker, managing to win just one point.

In the third set, Ramkumar Ramanathan could not generate any break points even as Donskoy converted one of his two break opportunities to end the Indian’s campaign.

World No. 156 Prajnesh Gunneswaran is the only Indian left in the US Open qualifying draw now, and he will take on No. 232 Brayden Schnur of Canada in his first-round match on Wednesday.