Sumit Nagal
India’s No.1 tennis player Sumit Nagal recently revealed that he didn’t have enough funds to sustain himself on the professional – Gatorade have expressed their support
Gatorade has expressed its support for tennis player Sumit Nagal by offering a three-year partnership, welcoming him into the Gatorade family. This demonstrates Gatorade’s dedication to assisting athletes. Furthermore, Nagal will receive support for his recovery and nutritional requirements from a team of specialists at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI).
The company stated in a press release that its primary goal has always been to provide energy and support to dedicated athletes, while also striving to eliminate obstacles to success in sports and encourage increased participation. Sumit Nagal expressed his profound gratitude for teaming up with Gatorade, emphasizing that this partnership is coming at a crucial moment in his career, and he feels honored that his hard work and dedication are being acknowledged and valued.
With Gatorade as his ally, he is confident in reaching new heights both on and off the tennis court. Ankit Agarwal, associate director of energy and hydration at PepsiCo India, also commented on the collaboration, expressing the brand’s dedication to supporting athletes in overcoming challenges on their path to sporting success and warmly welcoming Sumit to the Gatorade team.
Sumit Nagal, who hails from Punjabi Bagh and is the son of a primary school teacher, faced significant off-court challenges last year. He had to undergo hip surgery and also contracted COVID multiple times, leading to doubts about whether he would ever return to competitive tennis.
For an athlete, waiting and being inactive can be extremely difficult. However, in the current year, Nagal participated in 24 tournaments and managed to earn approximately 65 lakh. His most substantial earnings came from the US Open, where he reached the first round of the Qualifiers and still received USD 22,000 (approximately Rs 18 lakh) in prize money.
Sumit Nagal expressed not only his frustration with the lack of financial support but also the absence of proper guidance for Indian singles players. He highlighted that India faces a shortage of both funding and a structured system to nurture tennis talent. Nagal drew a comparison with China, which possesses similar financial resources and potential to India but achieves significantly better results in international competitions like the Olympics, where they secured 38 gold medals in Tokyo.
A quick look at the ATP singles rankings underscores the gap among Indian players. Sumit Nagal holds the highest rank among Indians at 159, followed by Sasikumar Mukund, who is considerably further down at 407. Prajnesh Gunneswaran, currently inactive, is at number 540, with Digvijay Pratap Singh at 554, and Ramkumar Ramanathan at 569. This ranking disparity highlights the considerable challenges faced by Indian singles players in gaining greater recognition in international tennis.
More Tennis news
Follow our dedicated Tennis page for instant Tennis news and updates