Karan Singh sets up quarterfinal clash with top seed Jay Clarke at SM Krishna Memorial Open
Bengaluru, April 3rd 2025: Karan Singh put up a gritty display to beat Nikita Ianin in a tense three-setter on a rain-curtailed day at the SM Krishna Memorial Open at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday. Karan’s victory sees him advance to the quarterfinals, where he will lock horns with the top seed Jay Clarke.
Karan, the highest-seeded Indian at the tournament, staved off a stiff challenge from Ianin in a gripping three-setter. The Russian, who came through the qualifying rounds, seized the early advantage and pocketed the first set 6-3. Karan dug deep to fight back into the contest and broke in the fifth game to lead 5-2 and eventually secure the second set.
There was nothing to separate the two players in the decider as both held serve until 5-5 and it was at this juncture when Karan clinched the crucial break in the 11th game to close out a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 win in two hours and 17 minutes. The fifth-seeded Indian will now have a chance to avenge his earlier loss to Clarke last week, which came at the M25 in Ahmedabad.
Earlier, Clarke lived up to his billing of the top seed as he eased into the quarterfinals after a straight-set 6-4, 6-3 win over Kazakhstan’s Grigoriy Lomakin.
There was more joy for the Indian camp as Aryan Shah, fresh from his title in Ahmedabad last week, grabbed a solid win over his compatriot SD Prajwal Dev. Aryan capitalized on a double break to win the first set 6-3 and made his intentions clear in the second set as he broke Prajwal’s serve in the first game and again in the fifth to close out the victory in 80 minutes.
Aryan will next face second seed Oliver Crawford, who defeated Sidharth Rawat 6-3, 7-6 (4) in their second round fixture.
Chirag Duhan joined Aryan in the quarterfinals as he got the better of Abhinav Sanjeev Shanmugam in a marathon contest that lasted over two and a half hours. Abhinav got off the blocks well and comfortably took the first set 6-4. He had a chance to seal the win in the second set when the scores were level at 4-4 but was undone by a spirited comeback from Chirag. The 21-year-old converted his sole break point to win the set and then enjoyed a three-game spree to prevail 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Manish Sureshkumar’s campaign came to an end as he was beaten 6-2, 7-6 (3) by Maxim Zhukov, while Japan’s Ryuki Matsuda earned himself a spot on the last-eight stage as Nick Chappell retired mid-way into their contest. Matsuda won the first set 6-2 and was leading 3-0 in the second set when Chappell called it a day.
Later in the evening, Raghav Jaisinghani will take on Ishaque Eqbal in the men’s singles, aiming to secure the final quarterfinal spot.
In the men’s doubles, Adil Kalyanpur and Kody Pearson will face Parikshit Somani and Manish Sureshkumar, while Aryan Shah and Karan Singh team up against Alexandr Binda and Nikita Ianin.
Day 3 Results:
2- Oliver Crawford (GBR) bt Sidharth Rawat (IND) 6-3, 7-6 (4); 6-Aryan Shah (IND) bt SD Prajwal Dev (IND) 6-3, 6-2; Maxim Zhukov bt Manish Sureshkumar (IND) 6-2, 7-6 (3); Ryuki Matsuda (JPN) bt Nick Chappel (USA) 6-2, 3-0 (retd.) Karan Singh (IND) bt Nikita Ianin 3-6, 6-3, 7-5; Chirag Duhan (IND) bt Abhinav Sanjeev Shanmugam (IND) 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 1-Jay Clarke (GBR) bt Grigory Lomakin (KAZ) 6-4, 6-3
Image Credits: Deepthi Indukuri/ KSLTA
