4 TOP INDIAN PLAYERS, AND WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM THEM



If you're looking for added inspiration on your tennis journey, look no further than the successful Indian players who have gone before you.

Each of the successful Indian players here has created a tennis career based on a few simple yet effective traits. Here are their keys to success:

LEANDER PAES
Although news of Leander's retirement near the end of the global COVID-19 epidemic was no surprise to anyone, it was perhaps disappointing to all of us that he was not able to go out on his own terms. His "One Last Roar", as he began to call his farewell year on the ATP Tour, promised to give us a final glimpse as to why he was such a special player.


Ever since his early training in Madras at the Britannia Amritraj Tennis Scheme, Leander stood out as different. He was brash and confident. But more importantly, he was already showing us what he intended to be in the future. He wanted to be a professional tennis player—and a bloody good one! 
The biggest takeaway for other Indian coaches and players is that you must be clear about your future vision and have the confidence in yourself to pursue that vision. 

Once you have the vision and the confidence to pursue it, you're halfway there—yes, halfway! The other 50% involves hard work each day to reach those goals. Leander was one of the hardest-working juniors I ever saw.


DIVIJ SHARAN
Parents often ask me "Can my child go on to become a champion tennis player?" My answer is always, I don't know; I would need to open up their head and look inside their brain to know for sure!

The truth is that a player's mindset is the biggest factor in determining future tennis success. What motivates them? What are their dreams? If we understand their thinking, we will have a better chance of knowing if they can be future tennis champions.

Divij Sharan demonstrates how important the inner workings of a player's brain are. Meeting him or being around him does not give you any indication of the fire and commitment inside him.

He is a living testament to the power of commitment and professionalism. Any Indian junior player who wants to make tennis a career should be modelling their days on what Divij does.
The Sharan template is not complicated and it is not impossible for others to follow. It's actually quite simple. It's a template based on attention to detail (preparation, physical conditioning), continual improvement (technical, tactical, physical), and professionalism (taking care of your body, and ensuring a long career).


RAMESH KRISHNAN


During his era, Ramesh was not the biggest guy on the Tour.  At a time when players like Ivan Lendl were taking tennis more towards the power game that we know today, Ramesh was content to adopt a game based more on accuracy and guile. 

Although now retired, Ramesh Krishnan's career highlights why tennis is such a remarkable sport.

Ramesh taught us that tennis is a sport that allows for many different styles of play and that there will always be a place in tennis for smart players who can think their way through matches and incorporate a variety of methods to win.    

  

SANIA MIRZA
To reach the top in tennis you need to have a degree of luck and many good people around you. The most obvious people to play the biggest part in the early years of a junior tennis player are their parents.

Sania and her mother travelled the ITF junior circuit together in the early days. Apart from her parents' influence in financing her early career, on trips to tournaments, Sania's mother provided both moral support and a daily dose of motivation that moulded her daughter into a highly competitive and ultimately very successful player.


Sania's story shows us that during their junior development years, a certain amount of off-court distraction needs to be removed from the players' hands so that they can focus on a core set of tasks. Eliminating that extra burden on a player will free them up to perform at their best each day.


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