One in every of Indian tennis’ oft-highlighted points in current occasions has been the dearth of tournaments at house, a significant stumbling block attributed by the nation’s gamers that compels them to take the more durable route in climbing the rankings ladder.
Within the first quarter of this season, nevertheless, a gentle string of tournaments throughout ranges have been held within the nation, the type that hasn’t been woven collectively within the current previous. From January to March, India performed host to eight Worldwide Tennis Federation (ITF) girls’s and 4 males’s occasions, three ATP Challengers and the ATP 250 in Pune other than different junior ITF tournaments. And whereas the quantity nonetheless has room to swell in comparison with different Asian and European nations, it’s important sufficient to have put the ball within the Indian gamers’ court docket.
A number of have cashed in on that, many others—predominantly the highest execs—not fairly from the house stretch that started and ended with an Indian singles winner. After Vaidehi Chaudhari kicked issues off together with her maiden title triumph on the ITF W15 Gwalior in early January, Digvijay Pratap Singh gained the ITF M15 Chennai that concluded final weekend. The one different home champion in singles was Zeel Desai, who gained the W15 Jhajjar in February for her first title after 2017.
The 23-year-old Vaidehi has been the standout of this section. The reigning nationwide singles champion backed up her first ITF trophy with the W15 Gurugram title in February whereas additionally reaching one other last in Jhajjar. The $15,000 occasions might have the fewest factors on provide within the ITF tour, however the perception a title triumph can inject is unmatched. After years of near-misses, Vaidehi skilled that twice within the final three months.
“I am feeling assured after my previous couple of achievements. It has given me a substantial enhance,” the Ahmedabad-based participant mentioned. “After Covid, India is placing a variety of curiosity in holding WTA and ITF girls’s occasions, so it is a good signal for Indian gamers that we’re getting back-to-back tournaments at house.”
From being within the low 500s of the WTA rankings final December, the 2 titles helped Vaidehi rise steadily to be positioned 481 at present because the India No. 4 in singles. It additionally earned her a debut in India’s Billie Jean King Cup squad for the Asia/Oceania group ties final week. “I performed towards a top-20 WTA gamers in doubles, so it was an incredible expertise.”
Digvijay, in the meantime, captured his second profession title in Chennai final weekend after profitable an M15 occasion in New Delhi final 12 months. After a number of difficult months battling accidents and a drop in type, the title got here as a “great addition” for the 22-year-old. The one Indian singles winner from the 4 ITF males’s occasions and three ATP Challengers in India this 12 months, Digvijay mentioned house benefit does play a job. “It was wonderful to have these tournaments at house. We all know the circumstances right here. They will fluctuate relying on town, altitude, climate and many others. And we already know that. So that provides us the sting from the overseas guys,” he mentioned.
Title-winners apart, others gained as properly. Like Sandeepti Singh Rao, a 19-year-old who reached back-to-back singles finals in simply her second ITF season whereas defeating prime seed and seven-time ITF winner Diana Marcinkevica of Latvia in Jhajjar. Or the doubles pair of Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and N Sriram Balaji whose last run as an alternate pair on the ATP 250 Maharashtra Open in Pune proved a springboard to their Grand Slam leap into the Australian Open. Or Manas Dhamne, the 15-year-old ATP Pune wildcard who confirmed glimpses of his potential in his yard.
Sumit Nagal, the final Indian face within the singles draw of a Slam, discovered his means into his first Challenger semi-final since 2021 on the ATP Chennai Challenger in February. That week alone bumped him up 90 spots within the rankings from languishing within the 500s within the ATP singles charts. Again as India No. 1 in it at 366th, Nagal although couldn’t fairly construct on that, dropping within the second rounds of the Bengaluru and Pune Challengers that adopted. The highest Indian lady in singles, Ankita Raina entered the ultimate and semi-final of two ITF W40 occasions in Bengaluru and Pune, respectively, however blew an opportunity to clinch her first singles title since 2020 by dropping to 15-year-old Brenda Fruhvirtova within the Bengaluru last.
That’s the place the highest Indian execs fell brief in making use of the house run. Mukund Sasikumar, the ATP singles India No. 1 in December, reached only one semi-final in ITF Lucknow. Ramkumar Ramanathan suffered early exits in all three Challengers in India earlier than dropping all the way down to the ITF circuit; he additionally misplaced within the semi-finals of ITF Chennai. Prajnesh Gunneswaran too crashed within the first rounds of the house Challengers and has taken a quick pause from the sport. The injury-prone Karman Kaur Thandi has not performed since dropping to Ankita within the quarter-finals of the W40 Pune in January.
Now again to travelling overseas for tournaments, Indian gamers will possible have to attend until in the direction of the top of the season to get one other comparable stack of tournaments at house. “I simply hope we are able to have many extra of those occasions in India all year long,” Digvijay mentioned.