BENGALURU, May 14, 2026 (by Anirudh Suresh)
In one of the most extraordinary results on the ATP Challenger Tour all year long, 19-year-old wildcard from India Kriish Tyagi, ranked 1322 in the world, scored a gargantuan upset as he took out second seed Hamish Stewart to progress to the semi-final stage of the Karnataka Open in Bengaluru.
Ranked 994 spots below his opponent when the day began, Tyagi showcased the nerves of a veteran as he took out the second seed 7-6 (9), 5-7, 6-4 in a contest that lasted 2 hours and 42 minutes to make the semis in his first main draw appearance on the ATP Challenger Circuit.
Backed by the home fans in Bengaluru, the teenager, who had already beaten two significantly higher ranked players to make the quarterfinals, clinched the first set in a tightly-contested tiebreak where he saved one set point before wrapping it up 9-7. Earlier in the set, Tyagi got broken back immediately after breaking Stewart but the youngster put behind that frustration quickly to take the first set.
At 5-5, after both the players were unable to convert the break points they generated, the second set looked like it was headed for a tiebreak as well, but 5-6 down, Tyagi missed an easy overhead at 15-15 to hand the initiative to Stewart. That ultimately proved costly as the second seed from Great Britain took the second set 7-5 to force a decider.
The third set was played on a knife’s edge, and, just like set one, Tyagi immediately got broken back after breaking his opponent’s serve at 2-2. However the teenager, who plays for the Texas A&M University back in the United States, yet again showcased maturity beyond his years and experience as he reset quickly to get back into the contest.
As it turned out, it was Stewart who wilted first as the 26-year-old from Great Britain surrendered serve at 4-4 in the third despite having multiple game points. Tyagi had to save two break points of his own while trying to close out the match, but the youngster held his nerve to seal the deal and make it to the semifinals.
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“I’m blank, I didn’t know how to react after I won the match,” an elated Tyagi told the media after his victory.
“My first Challenger semifinal, it’s a big thing for me. Really happy. Now it’s crucial for me to recover for tomorrow. Now my main focus is on recovery,” he added.
The 19-year-old revealed that he entered the tournament with no expectations.
“I arrived here [from USA] two days before the tournament began. I had no expectations. I knew I’m gonna get a wildcard, I just wanted to play freely, play my game. That was my mindset.”
Tyagi, on Friday, will take on the fourth seed from Australia Philip Sekulic, who beat Malaysia’s Maximus Jones 6-7 (6), 6-3 6-1.
The other semi-final will witness top seed Keegan Smith taking on former world number 40 Ilya Ivashka. Both players won their respective quarterfinal matches in straight sets, with Ivashka yet to drop a set all tournament.
