Bengaluru Open | Manas makes a big statement

Bengaluru: Teenager Manas Dhamne lit up the opening day of the Bengaluru Open with the biggest win of his young career as the world No. 556 stunned fifth seed Croatia’s Matej Dodig (No. 231) in a three-set battle on Monday.

The 18-year-old wildcard from Pune, winning his first main-draw match at the event after a first-round exit last year, held his nerve to beat the 20-year-old Croat 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 in a contest that went on for over two hours.

Meanwhile, India’s top-ranked player Sumit Nagal (No. 275), who was playing his first match in three months following an injury-ridden last season, had a smooth start to his 2026 season as he beat Mysuru-born Prajwal Dev 6-3, 6-2 with his fitness and movement clearly making the difference.

Nagal did drop his serve in the opening game of the match but it turned out to be a minor blip as his superior-level of game and big serves turned the local boy error prone in what appeared to be a mismatch.

Earlier in the day, third seed Jay Clarke of Great Britain was upset by France’s Matteo Martineau 6-4, 1-6, 2-6.

In the first Indian match of the main draw, Dhamne stood out instantly with his movement and agility around the court as he constantly neutralised the heavy serves of Dodig, who struggled to find any real consistency throughout the match.

Training at the Piatti Tennis Centre in Italy for over half a decade now, the quality in teenager’s game was telling as the power of his backhand repeatedly pushed the Croat despite Dodig’s attempts to make him uncomfortable to his left.

After an even start to the match, errors slowly crept into the Croat’s game even though he stayed level till 5-5 with some timely forehand winners but the next game proved decisive as Dhamne pounced on a couple of mistakes to earn break points.

Dodig saved a few with big serves, including an ace, but his joy was short-lived as another shaky service game allowed Dhamne to clinch the set 7-5. The Croat’s frustration boiled over as he smashed his racquet, drawing a warning from the chair umpire.

The second set saw Dhamne momentarily drop his guard with both players struggled with their second serves in an even start but the Indian blinked first in the fifth game, handing Dodig the break. The Croat sensed the shift and closed out the set 6-4 with a couple of aces to force a decider.

However, the final set belonged completely to Dhamne as he broke Dodig early by drawing him into long rallies and capitalising on errors, racing to a 3-1 lead. From there on Dodig lost his grip as the teenager's intensity only grew with another break before sealing the set.

Speaking after the game, Dhamne said: “I had trouble in predicting his serves in the second set so I decided to make a 50-50 guess and move towards my left or right like goalkeepers do in football and it worked well for me because if I decide not to move, it was becoming difficult to contain his serves.”

Results: Round 1 (Indians unless mentioned): Manas Dhamne bt 5xMatej Dodig (Cro) 7-5, 6-4,6-1; Sumit Nagal bt Prajwal Dev 6-3, 6-3; 3xJay Clarke (GBR) lt to Matteo Martineau (Fra) 6-4, 1-6, 2-6, Petr Bar Biryukov (ATP) lt lto 2xHarold Mayot (Fra); Vladyslav Orlov (Ukr) lt to Dan Martin (Can) 7-6 (4), 5-7, 4-6.

Qualifiers: Round 2 (Indians only): Alexis Gautier (Fra) bt Sidharth Rawat 6-4, 6-4.