Tata Open 2019: Yuki Bhambri to skip season opener; Prajnesh, Ramkumar receive wildcards
India's star tennis player, Yuki Bhambri, will miss the season-opening Tata Open, the ATP 250 tournament held in Pune, which begins on December 31, 2018.
After a great first half in 2018, Yuki Bhambri missed the majority of the remainder of the season due to a recurring knee tendinitis issue. He is yet to completely recover from the injury.
“I should have a clear picture by New Year,” he said while speaking to the Times of India regarding his participation in upcoming tournaments.
Yuki began the 2018 season by qualifying for the Australian Open main draw. He ended up losing to Marcos Baghdatis in the first round. However, his breakthrough performance of the year came after that, where he reached the third round of the Indian Wells Masters, defeating the then world no. 12 Lucas Pouille.
He followed that up by reaching the 2nd Round at Miami and then going on to winning a Challenger title in China. However, injuries got the better of him post that and he wasn't able to compete at 100% for the rest of the season.
Meanwhile, Prajnesh Gunneswaran had the best year of his life so far, winning two Challenger titles and reaching a career-high ranking of 104. He is currently ranked 107 in the world and has now received a Wildcard to play in the main draw in Pune.
Along with him, Ramkumar Ramanathan too has received a Wildcard.
"Tata Open Maharashtra is one of Asia's best ATP World Tour event and we want to continue to grow to become the best by having the best players, providing best infrastructure and give a platform to upcoming talents from the country like Prajnesh who has rightfully earned the wild card entry for the event," said tournament director Prashant Sutar to PTI.