Sumit Nagal earned the biggest win of his career on Tuesday as he upset 31st seed Alexander Bublik in straight sets at the Australian Open. The world No. 137 came through qualifying and now finds himself in the second round, guaranteed to take home at least £94,000 (AUD$180,000) for his efforts. It comes four months after the Indian revealed that he had just £775 in his bank account because of the expenses of the tennis circuit.
Nagal became the feel-good story of day three of the Australian Open when he took out world No. 27 Bublik 6-4 6-2 7-6(5) to advance to the second round. The Indian came through qualifying to reach the main draw of a Major for the first time since 2021 and now finds himself in the second round without dropping a set.
The 26-year-old’s victory over Bublik marked his second-ever match win at a Grand Slam after reaching round two of the US Open in 2020 and is his best win by ranking. And it will have extra significance for Nagal, given the financial boost he will receive for winning a match in the main draw.
The Indian is guaranteed at least £94k in prize money – more than his entire earnings in 2023, which were £92k. Nagal has been open about his financial struggles in recent months, revealing that he had less than £800 in his bank account back in September despite winning two Challenger titles last year.
Speaking after his “emotional” victory, the world No. 137 said: “Obviously, I’m not crying right now, but of course, at the same time it hasn’t completely sunk in yet. You know, these moments you will go through as an athlete. Sometimes you’ll have a good year, sometimes you’ll have a bad year.
“Last year was probably one of the best years in a term where, like I said, you know, [from having] 900 Euros, not getting into tournaments for first few months, relying on wild cards in February to finishing 130 again. It’s not an incredible, or like, you know, record-breaking thing. From where I started, I was pretty proud of myself to be able to give myself another chance to be here, to qualify, to like I said, play second round on Thursday. It’s a good feeling.”
It comes four months after Nagal told Indian news agency PTI: “When I look at my bank account, I now have as much as I had at the beginning of the year – 900 euros. The annual cost of travelling with a trainer is around 100,000 to 120,000 euros.” The world No. 137 said he invested any money he made straight back into his career but struggled after spending a year struggling with injuries, having hip surgery and also catching Covid multiple times.
Speaking in September, he added: “I felt when my ranking dropped after injury, no one wanted to help me, no one believed that I could be back. That was disappointing because I feel whatever I do is not enough. It’s so hard to find financial support in India. To be honest I do not know what to do, I have given up.” Following his emotional admission, Gatorade stepped up to sponsor Nagal and help him cover the costs of life on the tennis tour.
With an extra £94k now set to enter his bank account following his Australian Open heroics, the 26-year-old will be able to relieve the financial strain he felt just a few months ago. Nagal will be now hoping to go one better in Melbourne by reaching round three, which would take him to £133k in earnings from the tournament.
The Indian will face either Mackenzie McDonald or wildcard Jerry Shang in his next round. Nagal famously took a set off of Roger Federer when the pair met in the first round of the US Open back in 2019 and will try to channel that form in hopes of a deep run Down Under.