Tour debutant Ramkumar shocks Devvarman

“Numbers don’t really matter,” said Yuki Bhambri after beating World No.64 Pablo Carreno Busta. “And I proved that today.” If the 21-year-old had had any inkling of what was to follow on Centre Court, he might have revised his statement to “like Ramkumar showed today.”

Bhambri could have been forgiven for thinking the day was his for he had just beaten a player ranked a hundred places above him. But the 19-year-old R. Ramkumar re-wrote the script by causing the biggest upset of the Aircel Chennai Open so far.

Somdev Devvarman, World No.90 and India’s top-ranked player, was beaten 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the first round by the qualifier, ranked more than 400 places below him.

The match was supposed to be a mere formality. Ramkumar, after a remarkable qualifying campaign, had rightly basked in all glory. This was his opportunity to savour the limelight on the flood-lit centre court and, in the process, pick up some valuable lessons playing India’s best player.

But what happened was just unthinkable.

For one set, the 19-year-old was neck-to-neck with Devvarman. It was supposed to end there. Instead it stretched to the third set. In a daring display the youngster started serving-and-volleying. It worked on and off. But the attempt said something about his confidence.

“It feels great. I was so nervous,” said Ramkumar. “Somdev is a great player. But I wanted to play my best. I knew I had a chance when the match came to the third set. He made me work for every ball. It would have been difficult had it stretched any longer. But it was good to win today.”

Both the crowd and Ramkumar seemed to feed off each other. Every time he asked the crowd to roar, the cheer just got louder and louder.

“I didn’t use the crowd well,” said Devvarman. “But whether the crowd is there or not (with him) it’s very disappointing to play like this after a good off season. But the last time I lost to a qualifier here, I ended up having my best ever season. So I need to find the silver lining.”

“I should probably get an F (grade) for this.”

Earlier in the day, Bhambri, the World No.196, survived an initial barrage of winners from Busta, to win in straight sets. Significantly more powerful than the 21-year-old Indian, Busta was clearly the enforcer early on.

“It was important to stick with him initially,” said Bhambri. “I was nervous in the beginning. I didn’t know him much. It was important not to make a lot of unforced errors. As the match went I got more confident.”

Bhambri compensated for his lack of power through guile.

After landing his shots mid-court — and the ball sitting up to give the World No.64 the easy put-away — till midway through the first set, Bhambri started hitting deep and hurrying the Spaniard. After pegging him back, Bhambri used the short-angle groundstrokes to set up points.

Busta visibly tightened in the second set. His shots that had initially rocketed across the court, now started either go wide or long, or sit up.

Even the forehands — a couple of which had seemed murderous before — dropped in pace alarmingly. Those shots that were hit in desperation by Busta were neatly re-directed. He clinched the set 6-3 to wrap up the match.

The day also saw the ouster of the first seeded player in this year’s edition. Eighth seed Roberto Bautista Agut, the runner up last year, went down 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to qualifier Alexander Kudryavtsev.

In doubles, top seeds Rohan Bopanna and Aisam ul-Haq Qureshi dumped defending champions Stanislas Wawrinka and Benoit Paire 6-4, 4-6, 11-9.

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/article5523803.ece

Chennai Open: Jeevan not much of a match for Vesely

The Chennai Open, as many past and present players say, is more of an education to young Indian players hoping to make a mark. A sizeable crowd, with lots of expectant faces and a top-100 player across the net, these can either bog one down or egg one on. 

On Monday, when Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan, India’s third best singles player and ranked 314 in the world, crashed out to Czech Republic’s Jiri Vesely (No. 85) 5-7, 2-6, he discovered a part of the education but admirably, was not a bit intimidated.

“I played a good first set,” said Jeevan after the match. “My aim was not to give too many free points. It was a good experience, lots of positives to take home. The atmosphere, the crowd, it sort of soothed my nerves.”

It was a match of firsts for both players – Jeevan playing his first tour match and Vesely looking for his first victory. The latter started the match tentatively. He trailied 1-4 at one stage but quickly found his rhythm. Jeevan’s reluctance to trust his backhand meant that he had to run-around the ball to convert routine backhands to forehands. The time that it gave his opponent to get into position and Jeevan’s lack of firepower handed Vesely the crucial advantage.

“At the start I wanted to play to my strengths,” said Jeevan. “I wanted to play a lot of my favourite shots. I do think I have a good run-around forehand. But I can’t keep carrying on with it forever. The day I start using the two-handed backhand more often, that will be the first tactical switch towards getting better.”

To be fair, Jeevan kept with Vesely in the initial parts of the second set too until Vesely broke to 3-2. An otherwise powerful server, the 20-year-old started missing a string of first serves. But crucially, as before, it was not for long. Down a break point at 3-2, two excellent first serves restored his confidence. Jeevan’s inability to sustain the pressure for long and Vesely’s ability to win back the initiative in quick time ultimately proved to be the difference.

Vesely is a natural mover on clay, as his record suggests – five challenger finals on the surface. He would have no doubt been encouraged by his first tour victory on a hard court, albeit a slow one. It does seem pretty impressive for someone who started the year on the Futures circuit and by his own admission hoped to do well in the Challenger Tour come the year end.

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/chennai-open-jeevan-not-much-of-a-match-for-vesely/article5519906.ece

Transformed Wawrinka is the favourite

CHENNAI: For a few years now, there has been some debate on when exactly the tennis season ends. Officially it’s the ‘season-ending’ ATP World Tour Finals that draws the curtains. But increasingly there are signs that the period post the U.S. Open doesn’t necessarily bring a sense of closure but instead acts as harbinger and a precursor for things to come.

How else would one explain the glorious late-run that Novak Djokovic had in 2010 and then thoroughly dominated 2011? Roger Federer’s second-coming which started in late 2011 and ended with a title triumph at Wimbledon 2012? Or Andy Murray, with help from Ivan Lendl, fixing his game with a mechanic’s zeal towards the closing stages of 2012 and unburdening himself and his country of the weight of history in 2013?

This year has also been no different. Djokovic has had a splendid three months since New York, and is already touted to have had the head-start going into 2014. But it’s the story of a man from outside the big four which takes the cake – the transformation of Stanislas Wawrinka from ‘Stan the nearly Man’ to ‘Stan the Man’. In September his coach Magnus Norman was still talking about ‘insecurities’ and ‘lack of belief’, but at the season ending finale he seemed to have banished them all reaching the semifinal in his first ever attempt.

It is in this backdrop that the Chennai Open begins for the 18th time on Monday, officially marking the start of the season, with Wawrinka, the top seed, an obvious choice for the favourite’s tag. 

But over the years, favourites have found it tough here. With the cut-off for the direct entries at its lowest this time, the field seems more even than ever before. Add to it the fact that most players arrive cold, except for Wawrinka who played at the Abu Dhabi invitation. The setting just seems ripe for upsets.

Wawrinka has last year’s finalist Roberto Bautista Agut in his quarter and the flamboyant Italian third seed Fabio Fognini in his half. A performance anywhere close to his best will easily carry him to the semifinals. The bottom half has the former champion Mikhail Youzhny seeded number two, with Benoit Paire, Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Marcel Granollers for company.

For the Indian players other than Somdev Devvarman, the chances, sadly, hinge on what the international imports do. Wild card Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan opens the singles proceedings on Centre Court against Jiri Vesely, a Czech ranked more than 200 places above him. Yuki Bhambri, if he gets past Pablo Carreno Busta (No. 64), will have Fognini welcoming him next.

Devvarman opens against a qualifier, but could meet Granollers and Paire in successive rounds. From reaching a career-high No. 62 in 2011, to No. 663 at the end of 2012 to No. 90 now, his energies have so far been spent solely on not letting the rankings slip too far lest he be unable to catch-up. It remains to be seen where he goes from here.

On Sunday evening, Wawrinka had a two hour long hit-in on the show court. After initially overcooking his signature one handed backhands he settled down into a nice rhythm. He will have a couple of more days to polish the rough edges, if any. Till such a time it’s for the others to be the show-stoppers.

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/transformed-wawrinka-is-the-favourite/article5515833.ece

The Indo-Pak Express is back on track

A day after the first trickle of players, it was time for the Aircel Chennai Open to open its doors to its first bunch of big-wigs on Friday.

Benoit Paire, Marcel Granollers, Edouard Roger-Vasselin, Bautista Agut and Sergiy Stakhovsky all made sure that the much-touted international footprint was finally visible. But it was something closer home that was the highlight as the Indo-Pak express, of ‘Stop War, Start Tennis’ fame, Rohan Bopanna and Aisam ul-Haq Qureshi, rolled in.

The two last played together in the ATP World Tour Finals in 2011. While Qureshi stuck with the Dutch player Jean-Julien Rojer in all but two tournaments since then, Bopanna, in a sort of musical chairs, changed eight partners. In was only after Wimbledon this year, that he settled with Frenchman Edouard Roger Vasselin, in a partnership which carried him to a career-high ranking of three in doubles.

The itch to mend the severed ties, however, seems to have always been there. “I approached him at the end of 2012 as well,” says Bopanna. “But as a professional, I respected his decision to continue with Rojer. It’s tough to break a winning combination. I enquired again this year and we are now back.”

As a doubles pair, the two offer something close to a comprehensive package. One adept at the net, while the other, with an admirable back-court game; something that was on display at the hour-long hit-in they had under the lights on the centre court.

“We complement each other rather well,” says Qureshi. “I bring certain things to the game and he brings some. We help each other out. I do it with some volleys and he with ground strokes. It’s just natural. We know each other and have played at the highest level for long enough. Bopanna believes I can help him get his first slam. I feel that he can help me do that as well.”

But two years is a pretty long time. As Bopanna says, having played with a slew of partners, brings with it different playing styles. “But, we are more mature. There will be ups and downs, but we have decided to fight it out,” he adds.

Earlier in the day, when quizzed on the re-union, Bopanna’s former teammate Roger Vasselin had this to say, “Its great that they are together. They form a great team. But its bad news for us opponents.”

Now one just hopes it extends beyond 2014, for, in spite of all the unfriendly banter between their respective countries, the two have a lot of love coming their way. The first indications of those will be visible from Monday.

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/the-indopak-express-is-back-on-track/article5509109.ece

Open once more

From providing a platform to see world class players perform from close quarters to giving an exposure for top Indian talents to join the milieu, the Aircel Chennai Open has done quite a lot for tennis. It has been the site for a string of breakthroughs, building on which the players have now reached unparalleled heights. Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi’s first ATP title in 2002, Rohan Bopanna’s first even doubles final in 2006 and Somdev Devvarman’s first ever ATP final in 2009, all these are significant milestones for Indian tennis.

But for this coterie of players, a place in the main draw of this premier ATP 250 event has been an elusive dream for most, including the budding youngsters from Tamil Nadu. Try as much as they do and improve year on year, the global world of tennis perennially seems to be a couple of steps ahead. In fact in the last four years, only Prakash Amritraj has made it past the qualifying rounds into the main draw – in 2010 and 2013, while Yuki Bhambri (world no. 195) has received wild cards.

“We are obviously better placed [than earlier years],” says Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan, India’s third best singles player in the world at No. 312. “But a lot of other players are getting better too.”

The cluster consisting of himself, his doubles partner Sriram Balaji, ranked 380 and Ramkumar Ramanathan, No. 502, among others, have all had impressive years, notching up their best ever rankings. Nineteen-year-old Ramkumar, sponsored by the Tamil Nadu Tennis Association (TNTA), has especially had a fantastic tune-up, winning two back-to-back ITF Futures tournaments, which has enabled him jump a whopping 200 places in just a month.

But they are now faced with the lowest ever cut-off for direct entries in the tournament’s history at No. 89, pushing even the country’s highest ranked player, Somdev, out of the main draw. As a result, the qualifying field might sport talents ranking as high as 90 including Sergiy Stakhovsky, who dumped Roger Federer out of Wimbledon in the second round, should he choose to compete.

“Qualifying is very tough,” says the TNTA Secretary C.B.N. Reddy. “It’s like a $100,000 Challenger tournament. In 2011, the current world no. 11, Milos Raonic lost in the final qualifying round but won the title in 2012. So that’s the standard and perhaps as tough as the main draw.”

However, efforts to boost local representation have started in earnest. Held as one of the main reasons, the absence of a single challenger event for a number of years is set to be rectified. In February 2014, two $50,000 (Chennai and Kolkata) and one $100,000 Challengers (Delhi) are scheduled. Come 2015, there could be three in Tamil Nadu alone.

These long term measures aside, backing for the players for the 2014 edition seems forthcoming. “We will continue supporting them,” says Karti.P.Chidambaram, Chairman, Tournament Organising Committee and the AITA Vice-president. “It’s likely that a Tamil Nadu player will be given a wild card in the singles and certainly in the doubles.”

For this year, the Open will continue doing what it has been doing all these years. As Jeevan and Ramkumar say, “soothe your nerves and prepare you mentally for battles abroad, help you not to be awestruck when you meet top players elsewhere, drive you to practice more, focus more and learn a lot by just getting out there.” But who knows, a surprise may be in store. Remember 2009, when a player ranked 202 made a memorable run to the final?

Edited version:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/chen-sports/open-once-more/article5473989.ece?utm_content=buffere6af7&utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer

‘It would be special to go deep in Chennai’

From pretty much an unknown at the start of the year, Canada’s Vasek Pospisil is now one of the most exciting of newcomers.

In 2013 he beat top-10 players, achieved Davis Cup success and almost etched his name alongside those who spoilt many a Roger Federer party (he lost in three sets at Basel).

Now ranked 32 in the world, the 23-year-old dwelt on the year gone by in an email interaction with The Hindu, ahead of the Aircel Chennai Open.

What were your goals when you were young?

To be a professional tennis player though not very specific in terms of rankings or achievements. It seemed like a long shot from my ‘small’ town [Vancouver]. I watched the Grand Slams on TV and dreamed that it would be me one day.

From being ranked in the 300s in 2010 to 140 at the start of 2013 to No. 32 now, how has the journey been?

Amazing. There have been a lot of sacrifices, tons of hard work, and lots of patience. It's extremely satisfying to see myself improve the way I have.

At the Montreal Masters you beat John Isner and Tomas Berdych and reached the semis. Is that your most memorable moment of the year also considering that it was there in 2011 you won your first tour match too?

Absolutely. I would say it was the most memorable one of my career. It was incredible to play so well at my home tournament and to have my breakthrough there.

How was it being a part of the Canada team which was a semifinalist in the Davis Cup?

Canada had never made it past the first round of the World Group and to accomplish that was a moving experience. For a tennis player, there’s really no other feeling quite like representing your country. It’s an adrenaline rush unmatched by other competitions and always makes you a tougher competitor.

Your compatriot Milos Raonic [now world no. 11] won here in Chennai in 2012. What are your expectations?

I go into every tournament wanting to do well. It would be really special to go deep in Chennai. Of course, I would love to win the tournament, but I’m sure the other 31 players would like to as well.

Your goal so far has been “to be a consistent Top 30 player”. Now that is going to change for 2014 right?

Yes! It’s human nature to want more when you achieve something and now that I am ranked where I am, my goal is to be a top-10 player.

From Twitter we learn that you are addicted to coconut water. Tell us about that.

I truly am. The first time I had it, it was disgusting. I’m not sure if it’s because I drank it warm but I refused to drink it for a few years after that. Then one day I tried it again and it was delicious. The more I drink it now, the more I want. It’s starting to get out of control!

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/it-would-be-special-to-go-deep-in-chennai/article5470925.ece#comments

'I hope to do well again in Chennai'

CHENNAI: Etched on his left arm is a tattoo that reads, “Try again. Fail again. Fail better”, a quote of the great Irish writer Samuel Beckett. For a good part of the year, he has indeed failed better, notching up eight wins over the top 10 and losing only to the best.

Due to feature at the Aircel Chennai Open as the top seed, the world’s eighth best player, Stanislas Wawrinka, shared his thoughts in an email interview with The Hindu.

What did you do differently in 2013 to result in such a great season?

I gained a lot of confidence from my great performance in Australia even if I finally lost to Novak Djokovic. Winning in Oeiras [Portugal Open] was a huge confidence booster. I always knew that I could be back in the top 10 if I keep working hard and I’m happy that I made it.

Close losses like those to Djokovic in Melbourne and New York might have shattered many but you seem to have gained strength from them. Can you explain that?

You probably know about the tattoo. As a tennis player you have to get used to losing. There’s only one player a week who goes home without losing. Even if you play a great event like I did in New York [first ever Grand Slam semifinal], you end up losing. But the most important thing is what you learn from losing, how you improve and work afterwards.

At 28 years, do you feel the breakthrough year has come a bit too late?

Not at all. Look at players like Roger Federer, Tommy Haas or Radek Stepanek. They all play great tennis and are over 30. Today’s tennis is played at such a high level, you need to grow into it, have experience, learn how to deal with your body, the traveling, the pressure and so on.

Do you think you have finally emerged out of Roger Federer’s shadow?

To me he’s the biggest player of all-time. I would never ever compare myself to him. So emerging of his shadow would never be a goal. What happened this year, especially in Switzerland, is that people started paying much more attention to me because of my good results and the way I was fighting during some big matches. That’s what counts for me.

Now you are into the top 8. Where do you go from here and what are your goals for 2014?

Players in the top 20 are very close to each other and it’s so tough to step ahead. So I’m glad to be back in the top 10 and even happier to reach my career best ranking of eight. Now I want to make it to another semifinal. You don’t have to take anything for granted. It would be arrogant to say that I want to reach a final because I reached a semifinal this year. Of course I want to go as far as possible and I would love to do very well again.

This is your sixth visit to the city. You have been both a singles and doubles champion. What are your expectations?

Chennai has always been one my favourite stops. I like coming here and the atmosphere on centre court is always great. Of course I have great memories from 2011 and also from last year when I won the doubles. I’m looking forward to being back and hoping to make another strong appearance.

Edited version:

http://www.thehindu.com/sport/tennis/i-hope-to-do-well-again-in-chennai-wawrinka/article5441242.ece