46144ee81e17521ac98c1ea924e238707579adf2.txt Ajeet Rai

Ajeet Rai

Ajeet Rai
Country (sports) New Zealand
ResidenceNew Plymouth, New Zealand
Born (1999-01-18) 18 January 1999 (age 25)
New Plymouth
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
PlaysRight-handed
CoachRakesh Rai
Prize money$90,456
Singles
Career record2–8 (at ATP Tour level, Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles3 ITF
Highest rankingNo. 417 (10 April 2023)
Current rankingNo. 537 (12 August 2024)
Doubles
Career record1–3
Career titles1 Challenger, 14 ITF
Highest rankingNo. 222 (24 June 2024)
Current rankingNo. 243 (12 August 2024)
Team competitions
Davis Cup3–8 (singles 2-8)
Last updated on: 17 August 2024.

Ajeet Shankar Rai (born 18 January 1999) is a New Zealand professional tennis player.

Rai has a career-high singles ranking by the ATP of 417, achieved on 10 April 2023, and a best doubles ranking of world No. 222, reached on 24 June 2024.

Tennis career

2018

Rai's first experience of professional tennis was being given a wildcard into qualifying for the Auckland Open, where he was beaten by Taro Daniel in the first round. He played his first senior ITF tournament in Kampala, Uganda, in May, qualifying for the main draw in singles, where he reached the second round. The following week, at the same venue, he was given a wildcard into both doubles and the main draw for singles, and reached the quarterfinals of both.

He reached his first doubles semifinal in China in July, but the highlight of his year to that date would come in September, when he made his Davis Cup debut for New Zealand, partnering Artem Sitak to win their doubles rubber against South Korea, giving Rai a perfect start to his senior international representative career. His first ITF doubles final came in Hua Hin, Thailand, in October, where he and Karunuday Singh lost in a match tie-break to the top seeds, Francis Casey Alcantara and Sonchat Ratiwatana. In singles at the same tournament, he progressed past the quarterfinals for the first time, going all the way to take the title over Manish Sureshkumar in three sets. His season finished with a couple of quarterfinal losses in Futures events in Tây Ninh, Vietnam.

2019

Again given a wildcard into qualifying in Auckland, Rai was a game away from defeating Roberto Marcora in the first round before eventually losing in three sets. He and New Zealand junior champion George Stoupe were given a wild card into the doubles, where they lost in the first round to Artem Sitak and Austin Krajicek.

In Uganda on the anniversary of his ITF debut, Rai injured his back severely enough in his second event to need three months' rehabilitation before he returned to the tour in South-East Asia. Well-beaten in his first match, he steadily improved through a series of tournaments to reach another doubles final in Hua Hin in August. By the worst possible luck, his partner, former dual Australian Open junior doubles winner Bradley Mousley, injured his knee in his singles semifinal earlier in the day and had to retire from that match. He played the doubles final, but with very restricted movement the pair were easily beaten by the top-seeded Ratiwatana twins from the host country.

Rai reached two more ITF doubles finals before the end of the year, in Hua Hin two weeks later and in Cancún, Mexico, in late November, finishing runner-up on each occasion.

2020

With the ITF Circuit returning to New Zealand for the first time in several years, Rai's first event for 2020 was at the new tournament in Te Anau, where he lost in the quarter-finals of both singles and doubles. At the ASB Classic in Auckland, Rai received a wildcard into both the singles qualifying rounds and the doubles, losing his first match in both. The doubles defeat, however, came at the hands of the eventual champions, Luke Bambridge and Ben McLachlan, and Rai and partner Mackenzie McDonald played extremely well.

Rai's next stop after Auckland was Cancún, where he played three tournaments in as many weeks. The second was the most productive, reaching the quarterfinals in singles and finally securing a doubles title, in his fifth final. Rai then returned home for New Zealand's Davis Cup tie against Venezuela in Auckland, where he lost in singles to Luis David Martínez in three sets. He didn't play again before the international tour was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and his only subsequent events were domestic tournaments such as the New Zealand Premier League, Wellington Open/New Zealand Championships (where he finished runner-up) and the Te Anau Invitational.

2021

Rai resumed his international career in June, playing a series of ITF tournaments in Monastir over the next couple of months. He reached several doubles finals but, frustratingly, it took five attempts before he was able to win another title. Apart from a brief trip to Spain to renew his visa, he stayed in Monastir until November, eventually winning six doubles titles from 11 finals before returning to New Zealand.

2022

Rai made three more ITF singles finals, winning the last of them. He also took the doubles title at Nonthaburi in his first ATP Challenger event.

ATP Challenger and ITF Circuit finals

Singles: 6 (3 titles, 3 runner-ups)

Legend
ATP Challenger
ITF 25,000 (1–1)
ITF 15,000 (2–2)
Finals by surface
Hard (3–3)
Clay (0–0)
Result No.    Date    Level Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Win 1. 13 October 2018 15k Hua Hin, Thailand Hard India Manish Sureshkumar 6–3, 4–6, 6–4
Loss 1. 28 August 2022 M15 Changwon, Korea Rep. Hard South Korea Lee Jea-moon 4–6, 4–6
Loss 2. 9 October 2022 M25 Tây Ninh, Vietnam Hard Vietnam Lý Hoàng Nam 4–6, 4–6
Win 2. 18 December 2022 M15 Wellington, New Zealand Hard (i) [Note 1] New Zealand James Watt 6–2, 6–4
Win 3. 8 October 2023 M25 Cairns, Australia Hard Australia Jeremy Beale 3–2, ret.
Loss 3. 16 June 2024 M15 Hong Kong, China SAR Hard Russia Evgenii Tiurnev 4–6, 2–6

Note 1: this was an outdoor tournament, but several matches, including the final, were played indoors due to bad weather.

Doubles: 28 (15 titles, 13 runner-ups)

Legend
ATP Challenger (1–2)
ITF $25,000 (6–1)
ITF $15,000 (8–10)
Finals by surface
Hard (14–13)
Clay (0–0)
Grass (1–0)
Result No.    Date    Level Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 1. 12 October 2018 15,000 Hua Hin, Thailand Hard India Karunuday Singh Philippines Francis Casey Alcantara
Thailand Sonchat Ratiwatana 		1–6, 6–1, [6–10]
Loss 2. 24 August 2019 M15 Hua Hin, Thailand Hard Australia Bradley Mousley Thailand Sanchai Ratiwatana
Thailand Sonchat Ratiwatana 		2–6, 0–6
Loss 3. 7 September 2019 M15 Hua Hin, Thailand Hard United Kingdom George Loffhagen Chinese Taipei Ray Ho
Canada Kelsey Stevenson 		6–7(4–7), 2–6
Loss 4. 23 November 2019 M15 Cancún, Mexico Hard Australia Cameron Green Hong Kong Skyler Butts
United States Nicholas Bybel 		5–7, 5–7
Win 1. 1 February 2020 M15 Cancún, Mexico Hard Republic of Ireland Simon Carr France Gabriel Petit
Australia Brandon Walkin 		6–4, 6–2
Loss 5. 29 May 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard India Siddhant Banthia Australia Jeremy Beale
Australia Thomas Fancutt 		4–6, 4–6
Loss 6. 12 June 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Australia Jeremy Beale India Siddhant Banthia
South Korea Park Ui-sung 		w/o
Loss 7. 26 June 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Spain Benjamin Winter Lopez United Kingdom Julian Cash
United Kingdom Mark Whitehouse 		6–7(1–7), 3–6
Loss 8. 17 July 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Australia Jeremy Beale France Arthur Bouquier
Argentina Santiago Rodríguez Taverna 		7–5, 4–6, [7–10]
Win 2. 7 August 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Australia Blake Ellis Japan Taisei Ichikawa
Japan Seita Watanabe 		6–2, 6–3
Win 3. 11 September 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Italy Mattia Bellucci Brazil Gabriel Décamps
Germany Robert Strombachs 		7–6(7–1), 6–7(5–7), [10–4]
Win 4. 18 September 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Australia Li Tu France Martin Breysach
France Lilian Marmousez 		6–0, 6–4
Loss 9. 25 September 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Italy Giorgio Ricca Burundi Guy Orly Iradukunda
Russia Marat Sharipov 		3–6, 6–4, [6–10]
Win 5. 16 October 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Argentina Mateo Nicolás Martínez Tunisia Anis Ghorbel
Switzerland Mirko Martinez 		6–7(1–7), 6–4, [11–9]
Win 6. 30 October 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Switzerland Mirko Martinez France Théo Arribagé
France Axel Garcian 		6–4, 1–6, [10–8]
Win 7. 6 November 2021 M15 Monastir, Tunisia Hard Switzerland Mirko Martinez Belgium Pierre-Yves Bailly
Belgium Martin Katz 		3–6, 7–6(7–5), [10–8]
Win 8. 27 August 2022 M15 Changwon, Korea Rep. Hard Australia Thomas Fancutt South Korea Jeong Yeong-seok
South Korea Lee Jea-moon 		5–7, 6–4, [10–8]
Win 9. 10 September 2022 Challenger Nonthaburi, Thailand Hard South Korea Chung Yun-seong Philippines Francis Casey Alcantara
Indonesia Christopher Rungkat 		6–1, 7–6(8–6)
Loss 10. 5 November 2022 Challenger Sydney, Australia Hard Japan Yuta Shimizu Australia Blake Ellis
Australia Tristan Schoolkate 		6–4, 5–7, [9–11]
Win 10. 23 September 2023 M25 Darwin, Australia Hard Australia Thomas Fancutt Australia Blake Bayldon
Australia Brandon Walkin 		6–1, 6–4
Win 11. 25 November 2023 M25 Brisbane, Australia Hard Australia Thomas Fancutt Australia Joshua Charlton
United Kingdom Emile Hudd 		6–4, 6–4
Win 12. 3 December 2023 M25 Carrara, Australia Hard Australia Thomas Fancutt Australia Blake Bayldon
Australia Kody Pearson 		7–1, 7–6(12–10)
Loss 11. 27 January 2024 Challenger Indian Wells, USA Hard Australia Thomas Fancutt United States Ryan Seggerman
United States Patrik Trhac 		4–6, 6–3, [3–10]
Loss 12. 2 March 2024 M25 Traralgon, Australia Hard Australia Jesse Delaney Australia Joshua Charlton
Australia Blake Ellis 		1–6, 3–6
Win 13 23 March 2024 M25 Swan Hill, Australia Grass Australia Hayden Jones Australia Jesse Delaney
Australia Luke Saville 		6–4, 6–4
Win 14 18 May 2024 M25 Luan, China Hard China Sun Fajing China Cui Jie
South Korea Lee Duck-hee 		6–2, 6–2
Loss 13. 15 June 2024 M15 Hong Kong, China Hard India Rishi Reddy Japan Tomohiro Masabayashi
Thailand Thantub Suksumrarn 		3–6, 5–7
Win 15 17 August 2024 M25 Yinchuan, China Hard China Wang Aoran South Africa Philip Henning
South Africa Kris van Wyk 		6–4, 6–4

Davis Cup (11)

Group membership
World Group (0)
Group I (1–8)
Group II (2–0)
Group III (0)
Group IV (0)
Rubber outcome No. Rubber Match type (partner if any) Opponent nation Opponent player(s) Score
Decrease2–3; 14-15 September 2018; Gimcheon Sports Town Tennis Courts, Gimcheon, South Korea; Asia/Oceania Group I Relegation playoff, 2nd round playoff; Hard (i) surface
Victory 1. III Doubles (with Artem Sitak) South Korea South Korea Hong Seong-chan / Lee Jea-moon 7–5, 6–3
Increase3–1; 14-15 September 2019; Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex, Jakarta, Indonesia; Asia/Oceania Zone Group II playoffs (first round); Hard surface
Victory 2. I Singles Indonesia Indonesia Muhammad Rifqi Fitriadi 7–6(9–7), 6–3
Defeat 1. IV Singles (dead rubber) Ari Fahresi 3–6, 6–2, [7–10]
Increase3–1; 6-7 March 2020; ASB Tennis Centre, Auckland, New Zealand; World Group I Play-offs, 1st round playoff; Hard surface
Defeat 2. II Singles Venezuela Venezuela Luis David Martínez 7–5, 4–6, 2–6
Increase3–1; 4-5 March 2022; Darling Tennis Center, Las Vegas, United States; World Group I Play-offs, 1st round playoff; Hard surface
Defeat 3. II Singles Uruguay Uruguay Pablo Cuevas 4–6, 2–6
Decrease0–5; 16-17 September 2022; Espoo Metro Areena, Espoo, Finland; World Group I 1st round; Hard (i) surface
Defeat 4. II Singles Finland Finland Otto Virtanen 4–6, 3–6
Decrease1–3; 4-5 February 2023; Wilding Park, Christchurch, New Zealand; World Group I Play-offs, 1st round playoff; Hard surface
Defeat 5. I Singles Bulgaria Bulgaria Alexander Lazarov 6–7(1–7), 2–6
Defeat 6. IV Singles Dimitar Kuzmanov 3–6, 7–5, 4–6
Increase3–1; 15-16 September 2023; ILT Stadium, Invercargill, New Zealand; World Group II (first round); Hard (i) surface
Victory 3. II Singles Thailand Thailand Maximus Jones 6–1, 6–3
Decrease1–3; 2-3 February 2024; ASB Tennis Centre, Auckland, New Zealand; World Group I Play-offs, 1st round playoff; Hard surface
Defeat 7. II Singles Turkey Türkiye Yankı Erel 7–6(7–5), 2–6, 4–6
Defeat 8. IV Singles Altuğ Çelikbilek 3–6, 2–6