India’s Sumit Nagal fought hard before crashing out in the men’s singles pre-quarter finals of the Marrakech Open here on Wednesday.

The 95th-ranked Indian lost 6-1, 3-6, 4-6 to Lorenzo Sonego of Italy, failing to hold on to the momentum despite starting the tie on a resounding note.

The 61st-ranked Italian displayed his class and experience on clay courts to good use.

On Tuesday, Nagal defeated Corentin Moutet of France at the ATP 250 event in Morocco. He had rallied his way to beat Moutet 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the opening round of the Grand Prix Hassan II event.

In men’s doubles, India’s Yuki Bhambri and his French partner Albano Olivetti registered a 6-3, 6-4 win over the duo of Bart Stevens (Netherlands) and Petros Tsitsipas (Greece) in the pre-quarter finals.

On Monday, Nagal had achieved a career-high ranking of 95. His previous best was 97 in February, which he had attained after winning the Chennai Open, an ATP Challenger series event.

Nagal made it to the main draw of the Australian Open and also became the first Indian to beat a seeded player (AlexanderBublik of Kazakhstan) in the same before bowing out in the second round after losing to Shang Juncheng of China.

PTI