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India celebrates her 64th Republic Day today and depending on your perspective, you could be happy with the progress our nation has made or critical of the progress we have not. But if you’re a fan of Indian tennis, there’s not much to be happy about right now. The Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season, comes to an end tomorrow and there will be no Indians holding any silverware, not even in the doubles competitions. Here’s our report card on India’s performance in Melbourne this fortnight.
Grade A – Somdev Devvarman
If this was 2011, Somdev would not have gotten a grade A for his efforts in Melbourne. But this is 2013. The Indian missed most of 2012 with shoulder injuries and dropped to the 700s in the rankings. Given that he won just a handful of matches in 2012, mostly in the minor leagues, Somdev scored a good win over world no. 78 Bjorn Phau in the first round and then took a two-sets-to-love lead over the 24th seed Jerzy Jankowicz. The Pole is touted to be the next big thing in men’s tennis and while we can lament on Somdev’s inability to close out the match, let’s also applaud his efforts to extend the big hitting Jankowicz to five sets. Somdev did not choke this match; Janowicz is simply a better player and in a higher league. And once he got his head and his shots together, Somdev did not stand a chance. The Indian has already won 2 matches on the ATP circuit this season and will be back to around 400 in the rankings next week. If he remains injury free, Somdev should be knocking on the door of the top 100 once again.
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Grade D – Yuki Bhambri2013 is a crucial year for Bhambri. The 20 year old Indian has shown that he is good enough to win at the Challenger circuit and he needs to make a push for the ATP World Tour now. Bhambri peaked at no. 187 towards the end of last season but is already down to no. 238 in the rankings. A first round loss in the qualifying event won’t help his cause either. Several players wander the Challenger circuit for years and go from talented youngsters to veteran journeyman. The Indian needs to work hard to avoid falling into that zone. Fortunately for him, he is still young and has time on his side. But for this fortnight, a Grade D is all he can manage.
Grade D – Sania Mirza
India’s only noteworthy female tennis player came into Melbourne with high expectations. Sania had just won the WTA Premier Doubles event in Brisbane with Bethanie Mattek-Sands and she was partnering the world no. 1 Bob Bryan in the mixed doubles event. But Sania/ Bethanie were shocked in the first round itself by the Spanish duo Silvia Soler-Espinosa/ Carla Suarez Navarro. And the Mirza and Bryan duo lost in the quarter-finals of the mixed. Sania has decided to give up on singles to focus on doubles. The Indian ace is 25 years old and prone to injuries. Let’s hope she can win a couple of more slams before she hangs up her racket for good. For that, she will need to be in much better form than she was in Melbourne.
Grade D – Rohan BopannaIt’s hard to believe that Rohan Bopanna is not wondering the same thing that many of us are – just how would his career have gone had he not given up with partnership with Aisam Ul-Huq Qureshi. But like the Coorgi native, we need to look forward too. Bopanna is playing with a new partner this season – the American of Indian origin Rajeev Ram – but their partnership has gotten off to a rough start with early losses in the warm-up events were followed by a second round loss in Melbourne, where they were seeded 12th. And Bopanna made the quarter finals of the mixed with Taipei’s Su-Wei Hseih. Fortunately for Bopanna, he is only 31 and still has nearly a decade to fulfil his dream of winning a Grand Slam title.
Grade D – Mahesh BhupathiMahesh Bhupathi has already said that this will be his last season on the circuit. With a new partner in the accomplished veteran DanielNestor, the Indian should have a shot at winning one of the slams this season. But like everything else in life, the sum of two good doubles players does not always equal to a good doubles partnership. It’s still early to comment on the Bhupathi/ Nestor partnership and if they will find the right chemistry. The fifth seeds reached the third round in the men’s doubles where they were beaten by Italians Bolleli/Fognini and that was the best performance by an Indian in the doubles event this year. Bhupathi also won two matches in the mixed partnering with Russian Nadia Petrova before they were beaten in the quarters by the Australian duo Gajdosova/ Ebden. Just about enough for a Grade D.
Grade F – Leander Paes
Leander came into 2013 as the highest ranked Indian in doubles and the only one among the Indian doubles trio to play with his same partner from last year. But his start to the season has been anything but promising. An early loss in Chennai was followed by a first round shocking loss for him and Czech partner Radek Stepanek in the men’s doubles, where the defending champions were seeded second. Paes flopped in the mixed doubles as well as he and Russian partner Elena Vesnina, seeded second, were knocked out in the second round. Perhaps, the 39-year-old’s Bollywood aspirations are distracting him from tennis. Paes has done well for himself and at this age, he surely has a right to pursue other goals. But if tennis is to remain a top priority for him in 2013, Paes will need to get his act together quickly… on the court and not on the screen.
