India’s Mukund Sasikumar records stunning comeback

India’s Mukund Sasikumar staged a thrilling comeback to advance to the round of 16 at the 2025 Delhi Open, defeating France’s Sascha Gueymard Wayenburg 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 in his opening-round match. Organised by the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association under the auspices of the All India Tennis Association, the Delhi Open 2025 is an ATP Challenger 75 tournament played on hard courts with $100,000 prize money on offer. The winner of the singles tournament also rakes in 75 crucial ATP points.

Fresh from his part in India’s Davis Cup 2025 World Group I Playoffs victory over Togo, Sasikumar started his Delhi Open 2025 journey on the back foot, dropping the first set 4-6 against Wayenburg, who entered the main draw as a Lucky Loser from qualifying. However, he relied on a strong service game in the second set, winning 6-2 after converting three of four break points. Carrying the momentum forward, Sasikumar completely dominated the decider, breaking his opponent three times to seal a commanding 6-0 final set victory. He will next face Belgium’s Michael Geerts in the round of 16.

Meanwhile, wild card Ramkumar Ramanathan showed glimpses of a similar fightback but ultimately fell short against Dalibor Svrcina. After dropping the opening set, Ramkumar forced a decider with a solid fightback in the second set, yet could not sustain his push, losing in three sets. Among the seeded players, third seed Tristan Schoolkate had a strong start against Turkey’s Ergi Kirkin, taking the first set 6-0. Kirkin, however, responded in the second set, pushing Schoolkate into a tense tiebreaker, which the Australian finally edged 7(12)-6(10).

Sixth seed Shintaro Mochizuki, a 21-year-old rising sensation from Japan who can count the 2019 Wimbledon boys’ singles title among his achievements, also advanced, securing a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Denmark’s August Holmgren. In other results, France’s Kyrian Jacquet defeated seventh seed Sho Shimabukuro of Japan in straight sets, while the UK’s Jay Clarke made light work of his opponent Masamichi Imamura, winning 6-1 6-4. Qualifier Andre Ilagan prolonged his run into the competition with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Marek Gengel. Meanwhile, after a two-hour-long battle, Australia’s James McCabe overcame Italy’s Enrico Dalla Valle in three sets.