Pune, Jan 4 (FN Agency) India’s Yuki Bhambri received a direct entry into the men’s singles main draw at the Tata Open Maharashtra, which is scheduled to take place here at Balewadi Stadium from January 31 to February 6. Bhambri is currently preparing for the upcoming Australian Open after recovering from an injury. The 29-year-old will kickstart South Asia’s only ATP Tour tournament in the main draw with a protected ranking. World no. 18 Aslan Karatsev and defending champion Jiri Vesely will be vying for the singles title alongside seven other top-100 players as the tournament gears up for a much-awaited comeback after a year’s break forced due to Covid-19 pandemic. With a stiff cut off at 149, the country’s premier ATP 250 event will also witness some of the experienced names as well as promising young guns from the tennis world such as Australia’s John Millman, Portugal’s best tennis player of all time Joao Sousa and teenage sensation Lorenzo Musetti.
“Despite the challenges and the pandemic, we are glad to see such a good response with players coming from the world over. We promise to bring yet another edition with a high-voltage action for the fans,” said Prashant Sutar, Tournament Director. Karatsev had a phenomenal 2021 as he became the first-ever player to reach the semi-finals on Grand Slam debut in Australia, bagged two singles titles, defeated tennis great Novak Djokovic as well as clinched a mixed-doubles silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics. Meanwhile, Musetti made the headlines last year when he became the youngest player to break into the Top-100. In his short career so far, the young Italian star has impressed everyone with his consistent match-winning performances against the Top-10 players including Stan Wawrinka, Grigor Dimitrov and Kei Nishikori.
The 32-year-old experienced campaigner Millman will be another player to watch out at the showpiece event. He had a breakthrough year in 2018 in which he defeated Roger Federer at the US Open and also entered the Top-50 in the world rankings. Czech Republic star Jiri Vesely, who ended his five-year long wait for a singles title in the last edition, will be presenting a strong challenge on his comeback into the city. Among the other names, from the third edition, returning to Pune include runner-up Egor Gerasimov, all-time highest ranked Lithuanian star Ricardas Berankis, World No. 49 James Duckworth and Italian star Stefano Travaglia, who clinched his first ATP challenger title in Sibiu recently. Former Youth Olympics champion Kamil Majchrzak, Moldova’s first-ever ATP singles title winner Radu Albot and World No. 62 Gianluca Mager are the other notable names from the acceptance list. The qualifying draws will take place on January 30 and 31.