Mumbai Open Tennis Championships Day 1: Sahaja Yamalapalli upsets top seed Kayla Day, Ankita/Rutuja go down fighting

The first day of the 2024 Mumbai Open brought some electric action to the tennis court. India had three players in the fray, and it was youngster Sahaja Yamalapalli who claimed the country's only win for the day.

Yamalapalli, ranked 2nd in India and 335th in the world, was playing American top seed Kayla Day. Despite having the home advantage, the wild card entrant was the underdog going into the game.

However, Yamalapalli fully capitalized on the cheering crowd, registering a 6-4 win in the first game. Day came back fighting in the next game, winning it 6-1. Not one to be easily fazed, Yamalapalli eventually sealed her victory, winning the third set 6-4, in 2 hours and 43 minutes.

The nation’s only other singles player on the court at the Mumbai Open on day one was Vaishnavi Adkar. The 18-year-old was up against lucky loser Sohyun Park, after her original opponent, Himeno Sakatsume, was forced to pull out of the event. Adkar and Park had a lengthy battle before the latter took home the win 6-2, 2-6, 6-1.

The last match of the day for Indian fans was the doubles encounter between Ankita Raina/Rutuja Bhosale and Naiktha Bains/Fanny Stollar.

Raina and Bhosale started their match strong, storming to a 6-3 win in the first game. However, Bains and Stollar made a quick comeback, forcing a decider 6-2. The third game was one for the books, with both sides bringing the heat. Eventually, the British-Hungarian duo took the win 10-8.

Mumbai Open 2024: Full results at the end of day one (Indians Only)

Women's Singles Round of 32

Sahaja Yamalapalli (IND) def. (1) Kayla Day (USA) 6-4, 1-6, 6-4

Sohyun Park (LL) (KOR) def. Vaishnavi Adkar (IND) 6-2, 2-6, 6-1

Naiktha Bains (GBR)/ Fanny Stollar (HUN) def. Ankita Raina (IND)/ Rutuja Bhosale (IND) 3-6, 6-2, 10-8