Yuki Bhambri and Elias Ymer will battle it out in the singles qualifiers of the fifth edition of the Tata Open Maharashtra as the qualifying draw features a highly competitive field with the cut off standing at a stiff 243.
The Tata Open Maharashtra - South Asia’s only ATP 250 event - will be held at the Balewadi Stadium from December 31 to January 7 and Bhambri has made the cut into the qualifiers on the basis of his protected rankings of 127. The former junior world No.1 Bhambri staged an impressive comeback last year in the Tata Open Maharashtra after an injury kept him away from the action for two years. His campaign, however, was halted in the pre-quarterfinals.
“It’s always good to see an Indian name in the line-up because that’s our main objective of conducting such a big tournament—to inspire and increase Indian participation. As organisers, we are also delighted to see strong foreign names in the qualifiers similar to what we saw earlier in the main draw. The special fifth edition is going to be exciting,” said Prashant Sutar, tournament director of Tata Open Maharashtra.
READ: Marin Cilic headlines strong field at Tata Open Maharashtra
The 26-year-old Ymer was also on a roll in the last edition where he put up solid performances which included him beating the top-seed and then World No. 15 Aslan Karatsev in straight sets in the Round of 16.
Besides Ymer, American Christopher Eubanks and the former World No. 39 Peter Gojowczyk are the key attractions among international stars.The former Grand Slam champion Marin Cilic and the last edition’s runner-up Emil Ruusuvuori are among the 17 Top-100 players to feature in the singles main draw.
The qualifiers event will witness 16 players, including two wild card entrants, fighting for four main draw spots. The qualifiers will begin on December 31 while the main draw will be played from January 2-7.
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