Somdev's chance to shine at home

Davis Cupper Somdev Devvarman will be looking to make the most of home conditions when the Air Asia Open, an ATP Challenger event, kicks off here at the KSLTA Stadium on Monday.

Not too long ago, the 30-year-old was the flag-bearer of Indian tennis in singles events but pegged back by injuries and subsequent recovery struggles, the Assamese has been forced to concede the spotlight to the rising Yuki Bhambri in recent months.

But with Yuki pulling out of the event here, Somdev, ranked 175 in the world and seeded fourth, will once again lead the home charge in a field that doesn’t weigh very heavily.

Somdev’s results on the Tour has not been very impressive this year. While he posted wins at the Delhi Open in February and Nielsen Pro Tennis Championships last month, results otherwise are far from his own satisfaction.

He has suffered 10 losses in the opening round (last-32) itself, including once each to Yuki and Ramkumar Ramanathan. Having said that, this tournament offers Somdev a chance to change his fortunes, considering how much he likes the conditions in Bengaluru and the field not being very strong. Somdev also enjoyed a good Davis Cup outing where where he pulled off a stunning straight-sets win over Jiri Vesely of Czech Republic in New Delhi last month.

Somdev, who will also be competing in the doubles with Christoper Marquis, will kick-start his singles journey on Tuesday.

Saketh Myneni, ranked 132 in the world and seeded just a place above Somdev, is another Indian to watch out for. The tall 27-year-old, who has juggled both singles and doubles pretty well this year, has the potential to spring a surprise or two and he would be determined to do just that.

Spaniard Adrian Menendez-Maceiras, ranked 137, has been granted the top seed with Britain’s James Ward seeded second.  Ramkumar is another Indian hoping to cash in on the home conditions while Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan has pulled out due to illness.

Seedings (Indians unless mentioned): Adrian Menendez-Maceiras (Esp) 1; James Ward (Gbr) 2; Saketh Myneni 3; Somdev Devvarman 4; Yannick Mertens (Bel) 5; Ti Chen (Tpe) 6; Alexander Kudryavtsev (Rus) 7; Germain Gigounon (Bel) 8.