Niki Poonacha Secures Australian Open Spot with Wildcard Victory

Niki Poonacha's Remarkable Achievement

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], November 29: Niki Kaliyanda Poonacha from Karnataka has earned a spot in the men's doubles main draw for the 2026 Australian Open after triumphing in the Asia-Pacific Wildcard Playoff held in Chengdu, China.

As the second seed, Niki teamed up with Thailand's Pruchya Isaro. The duo first overcame Tianzhi Qian and Bowen Wu, followed by a semifinal victory against Pak Long Yeung and Chih Chi Huang, as reported by KSLTA.

In the final match, they secured a convincing 6-4, 6-3 win over Japan's Seita Kusuhara and Katsuki Nakagawa, thus clinching the wildcard for the Australian Open. This marks Niki's inaugural appearance in a Grand Slam main draw.

In recognition of this significant achievement, KSLTA has announced a reward of Rs 1,00,000 for Niki Poonacha.

Maheshwar Rao, Chief Commissioner of the Greater Bengaluru Authority and Hon. Secretary of KSLTA, expressed, “We are incredibly excited about Niki Poonacha’s outstanding performance in Chengdu, where he and Pruchya Isaro won the Australian Open wildcard qualifying event. We take pride in his continuation of the legacy left by Rohan Bopanna, who recently retired. We wish Poonacha and Pruchya Isaro the best of luck at the 2026 Australian Open, confident that he will bring pride to our state and nation. KSLTA is pleased to reward Poonacha with Rs. 1 lakh for this accomplishment.”

KSLTA is dedicated to supporting athletes from Karnataka on both national and international stages and celebrates milestones that promote tennis within the state.