Sumit Nagal targets Tokyo Olympics by breaking into top 80 of ATP rankings

What's the story?

India’s upcoming tennis star, Sumit Nagal has expressed his desire to improve his ranking and qualify for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. He also mentioned that he has worked hard on his fitness levels because of which he stayed injury-free in 2019.

The background

Nagal had grabbed the world's attention when he won the 2015 Wimbledon boys' doubles championship along with Vietnam's Nam Hoang Ly. He carried forward his success in the men's division and qualified for the main draw of US Open earlier this year. Though he got a tough opponent in Roger Federer in the first round, he gave the Swiss legend a run for his money by winning the first set.

The heart of the matter

Talking to reporters at an event in Chennai, Nagal talked about his goals for the upcoming year and said:

" First it is the top 100, then look for the top 80 and look for the Olympics spot. I think it is around 80-85 to make it to the Olympics."

When asked about the success that he achieved in 2019, the Haryana-born star replied:

"The biggest factor this season was staying injury-free. In my last 4-5 years, every year I have played seven to eight months. For the first time in the last five years, I had played without getting injured. I tore my ankle in the summer. Other than that body has been fine. No new injuries or no big issues with my body."

Continuing to talk about his future aims, Nagal added:

I think mostly the aim is to play the ATP Tour this year. I want to improve my ranking. I am still in a spot where I will mostly be in the qualifiers of the ATP 250 events, so the focus is to improve my ranking."

What's next?

The 22-year-old Nagal had achieved his best ranking of 129 in October. He will look to improve his game in the coming months and secure an Olympic spot by breaking into the top 80.