Prakash Amritraj defeated Russian Kirill Ivanov Smolenski 6-4, 6-3 in the USD 25,000 tennis tournament in Uzbekistan yesterday to record his first final appearance in an ATP Challenger event.

This is the first instance of an Indian reaching a Challenger final since Leander Paes won in Mumbai in 2000.

The last time an Indian made it to the final in a Challenger abroad was in 1998 when Paes won the title in Bangkok.

Amritraj is bound to enter the top-230 in rankings after the victory, another feat to emulate Paes who was placed at 232 more than two years ago before his singles ranking came down.

Sunil Kumar Sipaeya, the other Indian in the draw, saw his winning streak come to an end with a 5-7, 1-6 loss to top seed Igot Kunytsin of Russia in the other semifinal.

Sipaeya had beaten three top-400 players including compatriot Harsh Mankad in the quarterfinals on his way to the last-four stage.

Earlier, the Uzbekistan event was witness to three Indian reaching the quarterfinals of a Challenger for the first time.

Their performance is good news for Indian tennis, particularly in the wake of the loss to Japan in Davis Cup in April after maintaining a stranglehold on the traditional rival for 74 years.