Dubai: Comeback-man Yuki Bhambri has finally announced his arrival as he toppled India number one ranked player Prajnesh Gunneswaran in the Qualifiers of the Dubai Duty Free Championships, here on Saturday.
Going in on a Protected Ranking (PR), the 28-year-old eliminated Prajnesh 6-1 6-4, in what was a convincing win in the opening round of the hard court tournament.
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It has been a smooth ride for Yuki so far as he has not lost to Prajnesh in three meetings. He had previously thumped his seventh seed compatriot twice in 2017 in Bengaluru and Karshi.
An injury forced Yuki to stay away from the game for two years. Following his return at the Singapore Open, he lost to Matthew Ebden.
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The swashbuckling player will now face another compatriot Ramkumar Ramanathan, who has beaten sixth seed Russian Evgeny Donskoy 6-4-6-4.
Against Ramkumar too, Yuki has enjoyed wins in four matches out of five.
The all-Indian second round means that at least one player from country will compete in the main draw of the prestigious ATP 500 event.
