Bengaluru Open 2025: Young Dhamne, seasoned Ram Kumar, Prajwal Dev enter singles draw via wild card
3 min read
Bengaluru: The 17-year-old Indian talent Manas Dhamne and experienced promoters Ram Kumar Ramanathan and S D Prajwal Dev have secured wild card entry into the exciting 9th edition of the ATP Challenger 125 tournament to be held at the KSLTA Courts in Cubbon Park from February 24 to March 2.
Meanwhile, Krish Tyagi and Niki Kalianda Poonacha will compete as wild card entrants in the qualifying round and are looking forward to making it to the main draw.
One of India’s most promising young talents, Dhamne has been active on the circuit for two years and recently won his first significant title at the M15 Monastir in Tunisia.
He is the youngest player to win a first round match at the Junior Australian Open and the youngest player to play a main draw ATP Tour match in 2023.
Prajwal Dev and Ramanathan bring decades of experience to the tournament. Ramanathan, a key player in India’s Davis Cup team, has been active on the circuit since 2009 and is a Bangalore Open favourite, adding three doubles titles to his growing trophy cabinet over the years.
Prajwal Dev, on the other hand, earned an ATP ranking in 2015 and has competed in both singles and doubles throughout his career, winning one ATP Challenger doubles and several ITF doubles titles, including four in 2024.
Tournament Director Sunil Yazman said, “The Bangalore Open has always played a key role in providing a platform for Indian players to compete at the highest level. Manas Dhamne’s rapid rise is exciting for Indian tennis, while Ramkumar and Prajwal Dev will bring invaluable experience to the field. We look forward to seeing how all our wild card entrants perform in the competition.”
Meanwhile, the Bangalore Open doubles tournament will feature 16 teams, divided between 10 direct entries, four on-site acceptances and two wild cards. India’s Aniruddha Chandrasekhar and Chinese Taipei’s Ray Ho enter the main draw as the highest-seeded pair, while Blake Baildon and Matthew Christopher Romeos are the second-highest-seeded pair. Delhi Open finalists Nikki Poonacha and Courtney John Locke are also expected to compete strongly.
Maheshwar Rao, Honorary Secretary, KSLTA and Organising Secretary, Bangalore Open, said, “Doubles is a strength of Indian tennis. The field is strong, with top-ranked pairs and accomplished champions, and we look forward to another exciting week of doubles action at the Bangalore Open.”
In the doubles, top seed Vit Kopriva will play with Marek Gengel, while former world No. 17 Bernard Tomic will play with Nicolas Mejia of Colombia. India’s Siddhant Banthia and Parikshit Somani are also among the direct entrants.
Since its inaugural edition in 2015, the Bangalore Open has produced four All-India winning pairs, but in six of the last eight editions, at least one Indian player has won the title.
India’s Saketh Myneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan are the reigning Bangalore Open doubles champions. They are the most successful pair in the tournament’s history, having won three titles each, two of which as a pair (2022 and 2024).
– Team Mysoorunews
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