 "Sumit Nagal will be hoping to secure direct qualification into the main draw of the 2026 Australian Open via the wildcard playoff event in Chengdu, China, provided his visa application gets cleared. Reuters")
Sumit Nagal reached out to the Chinese embassy in India after being denied a visa without being provided a reason, which has thrown a spanner in the works as far as his hopes of competing in next year’s Australian Open is concerned.
The Indian No 1 was scheduled to compete in the 2026 Australian Open Asia-Pacific Wildcard Playoff, which gets underway in Chengdu on 24 November where the winner is granted direct entry into the main draw of the first Grand Slam of the Year.
“Respected @China_Amb_India and @ChinaSpox_India,” Nagal wrote in a post on X on Tuesday after his visa application was rejected. “I am Sumit Nagal, India’s No.1 Tennis player.”
“I am supposed to fly to China soon to represent India at the Australian Open Playoff. But my visa was rejected without reason.
“Your urgent help would be much appreciated,” he added.
Nagal left baffled after facing visa rejection for the first time
Speaking to Hindustan Times, Nagal added that he had applied for an ‘Express’ visa last week on Monday, and was scheduled to practice with world No.42 Alexandre Muller in Dubai for a few days before flying to China on 21 November.
“I applied last week, on Monday. I’m supposed to fly to Dubai on Friday to practice for a few days, and then travel to China on November 21,” Nagal said.
“I applied Express, and I just got a rejection - nothing written, nothing said. And this for someone who has applied for a Chinese visa so many times, and I have so many stamps on my passport.
“And I’ve played the biggest tournaments in China - the Shanghai Masters, (ATP 500) Beijing, Challengers, the Asian Games (in Hangzhou). This is the first time ever that I’ve been rejected for a visa anywhere,” he added.
While Nagal has reapplied for the Chinese visa, the delay might force him to shorten his trip to the United Arab Emirates, and might end up affecting his performance in Chengdu due to the lack of practice.
Nagal had made history at the Australian Open last year after defeating Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik in the first round , becoming the first Indian man in 35 years to defeated a seeded player at a Grand Slam. The 28-year-old from Haryana’s Jhajjar, however, would end up losing his second-round clash against China’s Shang Juncheng.