Indian tennis’ development has been sluggish and it’s struggling to have spectacular numbers. The very best ranked males’s singles participant is Sumit Nagal at 277. The subsequent finest is Aryan Shah at 415. Amongst ladies, Sahaja Yamalapalli and Shrivalli Bhamidipaty are the top-two at 306 and 401 respectively.
There was a uncommon ray of hope in mid-September when Dhakshineswar Suresh defied his 600-plus rank (629) to assist India beat Switzerland within the Davis Cup by upsetting the then A hundred and fifty fifth-ranked Jerome Kym in straight units within the opening rubber in Biel.
In an unlimited nation that’s rising robust throughout many sports activities disciplines, the prospect of producing a string of world-class singles gamers who can usually compete within the Grand Slams seems a distant dream.
Suresh Kumar Sonachalam, a seasoned coach with over 30 years’ expertise, has a number of concepts to enhance the state of affairs, a few of which discover a place in his e book ‘The Invisible Opponent’.
In truth, within the current Fenesta Nationwide Tennis Championship in Delhi, it was Suresh’s college students, Manish Sureshkumar and Keerthivassan Suresh, who competed within the males’s ultimate.
“It was a proud and surreal second, having two of my college students compete within the Nationwide ultimate,” stated Suresh, the Director of Chennai Tennis Centre. “It was a end result of years of laborious work by each of them, my academy companion R. Balaji and our workforce of coaches and trainers.
“In a rustic with numerous academies and fierce competitors, it validates our system and proves that our targeted, player-centric method yields outcomes. The delight is not only within the victory, however within the high quality of tennis, the grit and the sportsmanship they displayed,” added Suresh.
Tamil Nadu has a historical past of manufacturing top-notch gamers. In truth, final 12 months’s males’s titlist on the Nationals was Rethin Pranav, a junior participant from the State, who entered the draw as a fortunate loser.
“It was a testomony to Rethin’s unbelievable psychological resilience. It’s a high quality we tirelessly work on. Tamil Nadu has a robust aggressive construction on the junior stage, aside from a deep-rooted tennis tradition and a rising variety of coaches who’re keen about creating home-grown expertise.
“We deal with constructing a stable technical, psychological, bodily and tactical basis from a younger age, permitting gamers to transition easily into the senior ranks,” noticed Suresh.
Keerthivassan Suresh.
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The expansion of Manish and Keerthivassan has impressed Suresh.
“Manish is a consummate skilled. His dealing with of strain and his capability to focus intensely all through each match is exemplary. He has a whole recreation, however to propel himself to the subsequent worldwide stage, the important thing will likely be to be extra relaxed in matches and be happy to go for his photographs and never be too conservative,” Suresh opined.
Keerthivassan’s run to the ultimate from the qualifying occasion might have been a shock for a lot of, however Suresh stated that the boy’s work ethic had spurred the workforce to place confidence in his talents.
“He has already crushed many good gamers. I used to be not shocked by his battle, however I used to be particularly completely satisfied together with his bodily and psychological stamina. To deal with lengthy, gruelling matches and are available again robust reveals a champion’s spirit.
“We’re making some modifications to his recreation to make him more practical when he strikes to the upper ranges. He weighs solely 56 kilograms. We anticipate him to construct up over the subsequent two years, and solely then will he have the ability to realise his potential,” pressured Suresh.
The Indian doubles gamers now compete usually on the Slams and the opposite huge occasions. However Suresh felt that singles gamers must also be uncovered to a dose of doubles to hurry up their development as opponents.
“Doubles is extraordinarily essential for the expansion of a tennis participant,” Suresh stated. “Manish misplaced a detailed doubles ultimate within the Nationwide championship, and the expertise was invaluable. Doubles sharpens web play, return of serve and reflexes. It teaches gamers the artwork of dealing with strain in essential, short-point conditions and improves their tactical consciousness.
“It’s bodily demanding, however the advantages to a participant’s general singles recreation are immense. For my part, it’s non-negotiable for full growth.”
When younger, Suresh was adept at cricket, hockey and badminton, however was consumed by tennis when his father offered him with a racquet. He did a five-year commencement course in Regulation, and competed in tennis on the Nationwide stage, reaching No. 11 within the nation. He was within the Tamil Nadu top-three for a number of years.
Teaching grew to become a part of his resume when he and his shut pal V.N. Prem Prakash had been supplied a centre to run by their coach B.N. Swamy. Suresh, 59, has accomplished ITF’s Excessive Efficiency Course in Spain, and usually presents papers in international conferences to share his data.
He has a holistic imaginative and prescient of not simply making champions on court docket however creating well-rounded people by tennis. He additionally makes it some extent to maintain the sport reasonably priced in order that “middle-class kids can proceed enjoying with out feeling the pinch”.
In the mean time, Suresh is targeted on bringing out the primary in a collection of books that purpose to lend readability on learn how to construction one’s recreation and the pathway for a participant to observe.
“A observe champion falls aside in matches,” stated Suresh. “A technically proficient junior can’t shut out units. An grownup participant struggles regardless of hours of observe. The frequent prognosis — not mentally powerful. However the issue is poor decision-making.
“Tennis matches are gained by the participant who makes higher choices beneath strain, who recognises conditions precisely, chooses acceptable responses, commits totally to these selections and adapts when wanted.”
Suresh identified that probably the most essential facet of decision-making hardly ever will get mentioned as a part of a participant’s systematic coaching.
“Gamers spend 1000’s of hours creating method and health whereas the talent that determines match outcomes — decision-making — is assumed to develop robotically by expertise,” he famous.
Suresh is equally of the assumption {that a} structured competitors pathway is an pressing want for Indian tennis. In response to him, the nation must host at the least 30 ITF-level tournaments every for women and men yearly.
“If we are able to run these 30 weeks of tournaments for the subsequent three to 4 years, we’re positive to have at the least 15 gamers ranked within the top-400. If we then conduct seven to 10 Challenger occasions, then shut to twenty gamers will profit. This is able to assist about 10 gamers to get into the top-200 rank within the subsequent two or three years,” he stated.
Regardless of many academies and good coaches throughout India, the European and American methods — additionally costly — are nonetheless checked out as superior.
“It is a notion difficulty, rooted in historical past. Whereas European and American academies have their deserves, we now have the infrastructure and experience in India. The hole is shrinking. The change will come when our gamers, educated in India, begin breaking into the highest ranges of the world constantly. Success will construct religion,” Suresh said.
A technique of strengthening the Indian teaching ecosystem could be to make coaches’ schooling a steady course of reasonably than a one-time certification, he defined.
“Many of the candidates who attend the coaches’ course are aiming just for the certification with the intention to get jobs, and never trying to enhance their data. Encouraging a tradition of knowledge-sharing amongst coaches and integrating the newest sports activities science into our curriculum are essential steps. We have to professionalise teaching as a profession to draw and retain the most effective minds.
“It’s about making a system that produces a steady era of world-class gamers and never one-off champions. They may also be nice ambassadors for the game and our nation,” he signed off.
