Dubai Tennis Championship | Ramkumar Ramanathan loses to Roberto Bautista Agut in first round

Dubai Tennis Championship | Ramkumar Ramanathan loses to Roberto Bautista Agut in first round

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India’s run in the men’s singles of the Dubai Tennis Championship was all but over as 24-year-old Ramkumar Ramanathan lost to Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut in straight sets. India, however, still have the men’s doubles of Purav Raja and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan to play in the round of 16.

The Spanish defending champion was always the favourite coming to the match held at the Centre Court. Ramanathan started the match on the proper winning his service games in the first and third before he was broken was the Spaniard on the fifth game. That was enough for Agut to capitalize as he went on to win the first set 6-4.

The second set was almost identical with Ramanathan losing the fifth game on his serve and Agut kept the pressure on from there. However, Ramanathan eventually gave up and got broken in the ninth game as well as Agut sealed the set 6-3. Agut would be facing Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili in the round of 16, who qualified after defeating Russia’s Karen Khachanov 6-4, 6-1 in the last round.

If things go north, Agut is right on track to face Roger Federer in a potential semi-final showdown as the Swiss maestro’s search for his 100th career title goes on. 

In the other men’s event, Leander Paes and partner Benoit Paire defeated compatriot Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan 6-2, 7-6, while the other duo of Purav Raja and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan would be facing Australia-Finland duo J Peers and H Kontinen.

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