Ranzi Sports

Bengaluru, May 14: Kriish Tyagi, a promising talent from Bengaluru, achieved the most significant victory of his burgeoning career as the 19-year-old wild card player defeated the second seed Hamish Stewart from Great Britain, advancing to the semifinals of the Karnataka Open ATP Challenger at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium on Thursday.

Ranked 1332 globally, Kriish delivered a bold performance to triumph over the more seasoned Stewart, who is ranked 328, with scores of 7-6(7), 5-7, 6-4 in a thrilling match that lasted two hours and 40 minutes.

Competing before an enthusiastic home crowd, Kriish exhibited exceptional composure against Stewart’s formidable serving. The Briton fired 19 aces compared to Kriish’s single ace, yet it was the Indian teenager’s consistency and aggressive forehand that ultimately proved decisive. Stewart also faced difficulties with his control, making 71 unforced errors compared to Kriish’s 35.

The first set was a closely contested battle with both players exchanging momentum. Kriish secured the initial break in the sixth game, only for Stewart to immediately break back in the following game.

The Bengaluru teenager displayed remarkable poise in the ninth game, saving three break points to maintain his lead before the set progressed to a tie-break. Kriish remained steadfast under pressure and converted his second set point, eliciting loud cheers from the home crowd.

In the second set, both players confidently held serve and engaged in high-quality rallies from the baseline. Stewart ultimately achieved the crucial breakthrough in the 12th game, winning the set 7-5 and forcing a deciding set.

Kriish elevated his performance once more in the third set, breaking Stewart in the fifth game after the Briton had initially saved three break points. Stewart quickly responded to equalize at 3-3, but the young Indian player was determined not to yield. Taking advantage of another error-prone service game from Stewart, Kriish achieved the vital break in the ninth game, subsequently saving a break point in the next game and converting his first match point to secure a remarkable upset.

“I am extremely pleased to reach my first Challenger semifinal. I have faced powerful servers before and learned that if I can make two effective returns, they often become uncertain. I simply aimed to remain consistent and keep the ball in play,” Kriish remarked following the match.

As a result, Kriish became the sole Indian representative in the singles semifinals and will now compete against fourth seed Philip Sekulic from Australia, who triumphed over Thailand’s Maximus Jones with a score of 6-7(6), 6-3, 6-1 after overcoming a sluggish start.

Earlier, India’s Manish Sureshkumar was eliminated after losing 3-6, 3-6 to former world No. 40 Ilya Ivashka, who utilized his experience and powerful groundstrokes to dominate the quarterfinal match.

Top seed Keegan Smith from the USA also advanced to the semifinals after narrowly defeating Serbia’s fifth seed Ognjen Milic with a score of 7-6(5), 6-3.

In the doubles quarterfinals, top seeds S D Prajwal Dev and Nitin Kumar Sinha kept Indian hopes alive with a straight-set victory over Jeffrey Chuan En Hsu and Christopher Papa. Saketh Myneni and Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha also progressed after defeating the all-Indian duo of Sidharth Rawat and Manish Sureshkumar.

However, Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Sergey Betov faced a narrow defeat in the super tie-break against Petr Bar Biryukov and Grigoriy Lomakin.