Dhakshineswar Suresh and Sumit Nagal secured places in the men’s singles pre-quarterfinals at the 2026 Asian Games on Tuesday, with both Indians overcoming contrasting challenges in Nagoya.
Dhakshineswar, who received a first-round bye, defeated Indonesia’s Gunawan Trismuwantara 7-5, 7-6(2) in his second-round encounter, while Nagal completed a rain-interrupted victory over South Korea’s Seongchan Hong, winning 6-4, 6-0.
Dhakshineswar holds his nerve in tight contest
Dhakshineswar was forced to work for his victory despite entering the contest as the clear favourite on paper.
The Indian, ranked 364th in the world, faced an opponent ranked outside the top 2,000 but could not immediately turn that ranking difference into a comfortable win. Trismuwantara stayed competitive throughout the opening set before Dhakshineswar edged it 7-5.
The second set followed a similar pattern, with neither player able to establish a decisive advantage. Dhakshineswar eventually maintained his composure in the tie-break, winning it 7-2 to complete the victory in one hour and 25 minutes.
The win sends him into the pre-quarterfinals, while he will also feature in the men’s doubles alongside Yuki Bhambri later in the tournament.
Nagal completes two-day victory
Nagal’s second-round match against Hong was a very different proposition, with rain forcing the contest to be suspended after the opening set had begun.
The Indian eventually completed a 6-4, 6-0 victory, with the match stretching to three hours and four minutes across two days.
The result also marked a reversal of fortunes for Nagal against Korean opposition. He had lost both his singles matches against Korean players during India’s recent Davis Cup tie in Seoul.
Nagal will next face Uzbekistan’s Sergey Fomin in the pre-quarterfinals.
India prepare for doubles action
India will also have representation in the men’s and mixed doubles events later on Tuesday.
Anirudh Chandrasekar and N Sriram Balaji will face Nepal’s Abhishek Bastola and Pradip Khadka in the men’s doubles, while Balaji will team up with Ankita Raina in mixed doubles against Hong Kong’s Eudice Chong and Kairan Thompson.
With Dhakshineswar and Nagal through to the singles pre-quarterfinals, India now has two players continuing their individual campaigns in the men’s draw.