Tata Open Maharashtra: Local boy Kadhe gets wildcard along with Nagal as tennis carnival kicks off in Pune on Saturday

Pune, December 30, 2022: Indian players Arjun Kadhe and Sumit Nagal were on Friday awarded wildcards in the doubles and singles main draw respectively in South Asia’s only ATP 250 event as Pune is all set for tennis carnival with the fifth edition of Tata Open Maharashtra kickstarting at the Balewadi Stadium on Saturday.

The announcement was made at the press conference held at the PYC Hindu Gymkhana Club which was also attended by Saurabh Rao, IAS, Divisional Commissioner of Pune, Vikram Kumar, IAS, Commissioner, PMC, Suhas Diwase, IAS, Commissioner, Sports, Govt of Maharashtra, Prashant Sutar, Tournament Director and Chairman of MSLTA and Sunder Iyer, Secretary of MSLTA and Joint Secretary of All India Tennis Association along with Nagal and Mukund Sasikumar.

Pune has been at the forefront of all major sports revolutions; it has been a cradle to tennis’ growth and popularity in India too. Right from nurturing young talents to inspiring the next generation of champions, the city has played a defining role every time. The tournament will be organised by the Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association in association with the Government of Maharashtra for the fifth year in Pune.

“It’s proud moment for all of us that we are hosting the fifth edition of Tata Open Maharashtra. We have been successfully doing it for the last four years and this year as well the state government is very keen about successful execution of the tournament. Honourable Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister are all part of the organising exercises which are going on for the last two to three months. The basic objective is to bring tennis at the forefront,” Mr Saurabh Rao, Divisional Commissioner of Pune commented while addressing the media.

“This tournament has put Pune on the international tennis map and it’s a proud moment for us. We welcome all the players to Pune, it’s a beautiful city. I give my best wishes to this tournament. We are also getting school children to see the tournament. They will get motivation by watching top players playing and maybe one of them can go on to win Tata Open Maharashtra in future,” Mr Vikram Kumar, Commissioner of PMC said.
“All the preparations are in full swing. The new year will begin with this beautiful sports event in Pune. We have the best sporting facilities in the country at Balewadi [Stadium]. Pune is definitely the sports capital also. The organising committee has been working hard and the Maharashtra government has also been very supportive wholeheartedly. More than 250 young tennis players are volunteering at this tournament. We are very excited [for this tournament],” Mr Suhas Diwase, Commissioner, Sports, Govt of Maharashtra further added.
Pune-born Kadhe will play alongside Brazil’s Fernando Romboli in the doubles. Nagal, on the other hand, is the second wild card entrant in the singles main draw after Sasikumar. The singles field will witness 17 top-100 players including the World No. 17 Marin Cilic.

“I strongly feel a tournament of this magnitude is simply not possible without strong government support and we are fortunate enough to get that support. Last year’s tournament was well appreciated by the ATP as we conducted it without any issues despite Covid challenges. We have one of the best fields this year and many players have decided to come again and again to Pune and it’s becoming their favourite destination. We keep growing this tournament every year,” said Mr Prashant Sutar, Tournament Director of Tata Open Maharashtra and Chairman of MSLTA.

“It’s always pleasing to see Indians getting wildcards as one of the goals of hosting this tournament is to encourage Indian participation because that contributes to the growth of tennis in the country. Watching our local players fight against top players from across the world motivates many youngsters to take up the sport. I am sure both Nagal and Sasikumar will take advantage of this and produce good performances,” said Mr Sunder Iyer, Joint Secretary of All India Tennis Association and Secretary of Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association.

Three-time Grand Slam champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury, and two-time champion Bopanna will be among the key attractions in doubles.

The Tata Open Maharashtra is owned by IMG and managed by RISE Worldwide and sponsored by Tata Motors.

Entry will be free for the qualifying rounds.

The qualifiers will take place on Saturday and Sunday while the main draw will be played from January 2-7.

Where to watch: (Main Draw) Sports18 – 1 SD, Sports18 – 1 HD and JioCinema.