Exclusive! Sumit Nagal Aims to Stay Injury Free And Get Stronger Heading Into 2025 Tennis Season

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Sumit Nagal, the boy-turned man from Jhajjhar, Haryana, has done incredibly well to finish inside the Top 100 for the first time in the ATP rankings in 2024. Given the absolute state of decay in the sport at home, with the All India Tennis Association doing very little to lift it, someone like Nagal has slogged and risen.

Often misunderstood for being outspoken and brash, where he has even been labelled as someone who does not want to represent the country, Sumit Nagal spoke to MyKhel on purely positive things in an exclusive chat.

Asked about the year gone by, where he breached the 100-ranking for the first time, courtesy brilliant bursts in a series of Challenger events at the start of the year, Sumit Nagal said: "The year was good even though I didn't finish the way I wanted because of the injuries, scheduling etcetera but it was a learning experience."

Not someone who speaks verbose but prefers to keep it short, Nagal, whose favourite surface is clay, did a wonderful job by qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympics as well. How he did it is a fascinating story in itself. He had lost early in the French Open and then made a dash for Challengers elsewhere in Europe to yank up his rankings.

It worked, by hook or crook and he secured his spot in the singles draw of the Olympics. But not having done well in the Olympics, he did stress it is important for him to play consistently. "It is important I do well in the Grand Slams and win a few rounds," Nagal told this writer in July at the Roland Garros.

Sumit Nagal harped on fitness again. "Fitness is one of the most important parts in tennis. I need to invest even more time now (on fitness) and make sure to keep on improving and getting stronger, I obviously want to stay injury free as well," he told MyKhel.

The way he had pushed himself this season involved plenty of travel. It was not easy. A stage had been reached when he wanted to pull out of the US Open due to back pain.

On the sagacious advice of Mahesh Bhupathi, his first Guru, Nagal did rehab thrice a day in Dubai and flew to New York, where he lost in the first round. To play in all the four Grand Slams - Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open is no mean feat. In singles, very few Indians had done it.

On the Grand Slams and looking forward to 2025 Nagal said: "Definitely, if you are playing the Slams regularly, it's a very big help towards your expenses."

As someone who was almost penniless before the Asian Games in Hangzhou , 2023, Sumit Nagal has seen hard days. His bank balance had come down to the last few Euros in Germany, his adopted home base for a long time. It was only when he found support from Gatorade bang in the middle of the Asian Games, he could again prop up his career.

Nagal made it a point to thank his sponsors, which includes his employers Indian Oil Corporation, Asics, Aryan Pumps, Bank of Baroda, SG Sports and Yonex on social media as well.

Again, the support from Mahesh Bhupathi as a mentor has been massive for him. Nagal can today afford coaches and support from the Nensel Academy. Even Somdev Devvarman has helped him when he played a series of Challengers this year in Chennai, Bengaluru and New Delhi.

Does Nagal not worry he will have to defend many ranking points in early 2025? "I I don't think of defending points, my team always tells me to make points and not defend. I kind of use the same attitude towards it. I am looking forward to the start next year," stressed Nagal. His team includes coach, physios and trainers, all so important for a tennis player while training.