Interview with India No. 1 Ankita Raina: David Ferrer’s coach appreciated my backhand

Ankita Raina

India’s Ankita Raina is an epitome of sheer perseverance, diligence and dedication and 2013 has been rewarding her for her untiring focus and commitment to tennis.

Currently ranked World No. 353, the Indian No. 1 in singles has shown oodles of confidence on the court which has gifted her four singles titles this year along with four other final appearances.

Her latest exploit saw her capturing her fourth title of the year at the ITF $10,000 event in New Delhi a little over two weeks back right after becoming the first Indian woman to reach a $25,000 final since Sania Mirza.

Currently playing at the $25K Koksijde Challenger in Belgium where she is already in the quarter-finals, the 20-year-old took out time from her busy schedule and spoke to Sportskeeda about her wonderful season.

Q. Four singles titles and four finals already this year, Ankita Raina is on fire! Congratulations! How does it feel?

Ankita: I would just say that hard work is paying off but I have miles to go.

Q. It had been total dominance from you in New Delhi as you didn’t even drop a set. Which area of your game would you like to credit for such a thundering performance all week?

Ankita: It is my forehand that has helped me to climb the next step.

Q. You won a title at the same place back in June. Which one is more special to you and why?

Ankita: Both were important for me since I was defending from last year’s tournaments.

Q. Ankita, you have consistently been playing doubles as well. How do you think doubles play is helping to fine-tune your singles game?

Ankita: In 2011, I was not performing well in singles and that time, Rushmi (Chakravarthi) asked me for doubles. We won a few doubles tournaments, those wins and her tips gave me a lot of confidence.

Q. How do you think the experience of playing through the qualifiers and reaching the final at $25K Karshi has helped to make you a tougher player?

Ankita: I reached the finals by beating three top 300 players and that gave me the confidence that even I can reach above 300.

Q. Your impeccable backhand has even got appreciation from ATP World No. 3 David Ferrer’s coach. Can you recount that memorable day in Valencia? Did you get to interact with Ferrer himself?

Ankita: Yess! I remember that day perfectly. I was practising with a Spanish guy that day and we were hitting backhand crosscourts. Next moment I saw Ferrer and his coach entering my court and watching me play.

I remember they were walking towards the net but they were still looking at me and then they stopped and watched me play for a while. Later, when Ferrer’s coach was passing by, he told me that I have a really good backhand, like the top players, and that it’s not difficult to get there. And this was in August 2011.

Q. The same weekend you won at New Delhi, the all-Indian pair of Divij Sharan and Purav Raja made great news in Colombia by winning their first ever doubles ATP Tour title together. It must be really motivating to see fellow Indian players doing so well on the circuit?

Ankita: Whenever any Indian does well not only in tennis but in any sport, it gives me immense pleasure and motivation to work harder and also the confidence that I can make it too.

Q. What’s next on your schedule?

Ankita: I am playing a few tournaments in Europe and then would try to get an entry in Tashkent and China WTA.