India's tennis campaign at the Paris Olympics ended in just one day as Sumit Nagal and the men's doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji were defeated in their opening matches by French challengers on Sunday.
Sumit Nagal was the first to take the court. Despite his strong baseline game, he couldn't overcome Corentin Moutet, who secured a win in three sets. In his second Olympic appearance, Nagal came back after losing the first set but ultimately fell 2-6, 6-4, 5-7 in two hours and 28 minutes at a packed Court Seven at Roland Garros. In the Tokyo Games, Nagal lost in the second round to Russian Daniil Medvedev, but today, he couldn't capitalize on a manageable opener. He led 2-0 in the final set with an early break but allowed Moutet to rally and win.
Later, Rohan Bopanna and N Sriram Balaji lost 5-7, 2-6 to Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Gael Monfils, who replaced the injured Fabien Reboul at the last minute. Monfils' powerful hitting and the support of the home crowd helped the French team.
This match might be Bopanna's last representation for India in a multi-sport event, as the 44-year-old has announced his retirement from Davis Cup. The doubles match saw several intense baseline exchanges, with the French strategy of engaging Bopanna in long rallies keeping Balaji out of many points. The Indians first lost serve when Bopanna went down 0-40 in game six, ending with an unforced error. They broke back on Roger-Vasselin's serve, but Balaji struggled to hold serve at 5-6, ultimately losing the set.
In the second set, Balaji couldn't hold serve, and Bopanna struggled against the powerful strokes from the French players, ending the match with an unforced error.
Nagal and Moutet's match was another tough battle, with three of their last four encounters going to three sets. Nagal had previously defeated Moutet in the Grand Prix of Hassan in Marrakech in April. This time, Moutet's varied tactics, including underarm serves and effective drop shots, unsettled Nagal. The French crowd's support also energized Moutet.
Nagal started nervously, with the boisterous crowd backing Moutet. He lost the opening game after a drop volley error and faced an underarm serve from Moutet, who double-faulted but held his serve. Despite bouncing back with a love hold, Nagal couldn't find a way to break Moutet's rhythm.
Nagal had chances to break back but couldn't capitalize on them. He finally broke Moutet in the second set, consolidating the lead and leveling the match. In the decider, Nagal led 2-0 but couldn't maintain the momentum, losing serve after a drive volley error.
Moutet will next play either Australian world number six Alex de Minaur or Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff.
(With inputs from PTI)
