Somdev Devvarman failed at the final hurdle after an impressive showing in the Kennedy Funding Invitational, an annual charity tennis event, at Dellwood Country Club in New York.

The promising Indian youngster, a University of Virginia senior, was beaten in the final by world No 69 Michael Russel of the United States 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 on Saturday.

Russell, who held match point in the 2001 French Open against eventual champion Gustavo Kuerten, is the first player to beat Devvarman since a collegiate match in early April against Miami [Images].

Devvarman, the only amateur in the draw, had earlier in the semi-finals shocked Justin Gimelstob 6-3, 6-2.

The upset was another peak scaled by the US collegiate singles champion, who had earlier in the quarter-finals beaten world No 99 Robert Kendrick of the United States 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(3) for his first victory over a top-100 player in an international tournament.

The hard-serving Kendrick had taken Rafael Nadal [Images] to five sets at Wimbledon last year.

Earlier, the 22-year-old had beaten Brazilian Ricardo Mello, currently ranked 154 and previously 50 on the ATP Tour, 7-6(5), 6-4.

The clay court tournament reinforced Devvarman's prowess on the red dirt surface.

Virginia coach Brian Boland was all praise for the youngster. "Somdev was competing against some of the top players in the world, and I am really proud of his continued progress," he said.

"He is the type of person that does not try to concentrate on the results; he just looks to go out each and every day and play to the best of his ability. That's one of the reasons that he is so successful," he added.

• Complete tennis coverage
• All you want to know about Sania Mirza