Early celebration and ‘choke’ taunt: How drama unfolded in Australian Open qualifying match between Nishesh Basavareddy and Sebastian Ofner
Published 14/01/2026 at 12:13 GMT
React to this story
There was drama in Australian Open qualifying as Sebastian Ofner was left red-faced after celebrating too early against Nishesh Basavareddy. Ofner went 7-1 up in the match tie-break and thought he had won, but with 10 points required, Basavareddy fought back and pulled out a "choke" celebration after clinching victory. He faces Brit George Loffhagen in the final round of qualifying.
Basavareddy aims 'choke' taunt at Ofner after premature celebrations
Video credit: TNT Sports
Sebastian Ofner will not be forgetting the rules of a match tie-break for a while.
The Austrian thought he had beaten Nishesh Basavareddy in Australian Open qualifying after going 7-1 up in the decisive tie-break in the third set.
He lifted his arms in celebration, pointed to his head and fist-pumped as he walked to the net to shake hands with his opponent.
The problem was he still had three more points to win.
As the umpire informed Ofner of this, he made a swift U-turn and returned to the baseline hoping to close the match out for a ‘second’ time.
But eight of the next nine points were won by Basavareddy as he fought back to 8-8, and then 9-8.
Basavareddy couldn’t convert the match point as he whipped a forehand out of play, but Ofner did the same with his first chance to close out.
Ofner had another opportunity to win on his serve at 11-10 but dragged a forehand wide.
Basavareddy won the next point against the serve and then made no mistake with a backhand volley to win a dramatic contest.
Basavareddy celebrated by putting his hands around his neck, seemingly to remind Ofner that he had ‘choked’ away the win.
The gesture may have gone unnoticed by the Austrian as he shook hands cordially with Basavareddy at the net.
Reflecting on his remarkable comeback, Basavareddy said: "I knew there was still some time… In a super [match] tie-break, you always have a chance, so I kept believing.
"After I won that next point [at 1-7] I was like, generally when that happens, you start overthinking like, ‘oh, I thought I already won the match, through to the next round’. So yeah, that definitely gave me a little bit of hope.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2026/01/12/image-0ee2b06f-fd68-4cfc-9321-448367c45e4c-85-2560-1440.png)
Tweener magic features in early contender for point of Australian Open
Video credit: TNT Sports
"I saw him tense up a little bit, but the balls were quite old there, so every rally was a war and that was my main focus, just to put as many balls in play."
Basavareddy is coached by Gilles Cervara, who worked previously with Daniil Medvedev when he reached world No. 1 and won the US Open.
He faces Brit George Loffhagen in the final round of qualifying as Basavareddy looks to return to the main draw, where he took a set off Novak Djokovic a year ago.
Looking back at that contest against Djokovic, Basavareddy said: "I've always said his serve, I think that that surprised me the most.
"He had a lot of aces in that match and I didn't get many returns back in play.
"In big moments he was able to come up with a big serve, so I think that was the thing that surprised me the most.
"But of course, how he just improved his level over the course of the best-of-five match is also impressive."
Djokovic is bidding for a record 25th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, with the main draw starting on Sunday, January 18, live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
- - -
Watch and stream top tennis action, including the 2026 Australian Open, live on TNT Sports and discovery+
Related Topics
Advertisement
Advertisement