Jagtar enters pre-quarters, Naresh exits

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 14

Haryana’s Jagtar Arora eased into the boys’ U-18 pre-quarterfinals in the MCC Junior National Clay Court Championship, even as Naresh Badgujar succumbed to Maharashtra’s Atharva Sharma in the second round in Chennai on Tuesday. 

Arora registered a 6-2 6-3 win over 12th Aaryan Mehul Zaveri, but it was curtains for Badgujar as he lost 4-6 3-6 to Sharma.

Top seed Megh Bhargav Kumar Patel of Gujarat also sailed into the last 16 with a convincing 6-2 6-3 win over local lad Yeshwanth Loganathan, while second seed Calvin Gomes packed off Gujarat’s Kushan Shah to advance to the pre-quarterfinals.  

In the remaining boys’ singles first round matches, Haryana’s Sushant Dabas drubbed Maharashtra’s Abhishek Amit Shukla 6-0 6-1, while his state mate Udit Kamboj went down fighting to Madhya Pradesh’s Denim Yadav. 

Kamboj lost the opening set 6-3, but came back into the match with a 7-5 win in the next set. He, however, lost the deciding set 4-6 to make an early exit from the tournament. 

Haryana’s Lagan Bidhan also fell on the first hurdle. She lost 1-6 2-6 to Madhya Pradesh’s Sara Yadav in the girls’ singles opening round.