NEW DELHI: Hariharan Amsakarunan and MR Arjun are among Indians who have passed the opening-round hurdle in the ongoing India Open here. In normal circumstances, that's nothing to write home about. But for the young combination, making their first-ever appearance as men's doubles pair in the Super 750 event, that win was like oxygen, a victory that could give them that much-needed thrust in their quest to become worthy racquet-bearers at the top level.
They are still untested at the elite circuit and bound to face tougher questions in the days to unravel, but that result could be something that gives them the belief to evolve one step further. Especially given that it had come against proven rivals in the form of Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi. The duo from Malaysia were once ranked as high as World No 6. The World Championships medallists might have struggled for results in recent months but they still possess the experience and nous to take down opponents. But Hariharan and Arjun had their own plans. They were not just filling in numbers, they wanted to leave a good impression. The World No 54 pair, who are part of the Gopichand Academy, took just 38 minutes to see off the Malaysians.
"We had made good preparations coming into the match. Last week, we played in Malaysia but we didn't play well. Coming into Tuesday's match, Arjun and myself wanted to give everything. The coach had also handed us some tactical inputs about our opponents. And it worked well for us," Hariharan told this daily.
The coach in question is Tan Kim Her, the national doubles coach. After Tan's suggestion, Hariharan and Arjun joined hands just last year. And the decision has produced immediate results. Hariharan and Arjun captured three back-to-back titles towards the close of last season. In fact, those wins had made it possible to be part of the Malaysia Open Super 1000 event and the ongoing tournament. "We both are thankful to our coach. Ruban Kumar (Hariharan's former partner) and myself had reached top 32 but we hadn't produced the results that we wanted. The coach then suggested Arjun and me to play together for a few tournaments. It was just on a trial basis. But we performed well, winning multiple titles. Then, I decided to stick with Arjun," Hariharan said. The shuttler from Thanjavur, who took up the sport after watching his elder sister play during her school days, has now set big ambitions for himself. "It's going well and we would like to break into the top-30 ranking this year," he said.
Arjun, meanwhile, hails from neighbouring state of Kerala. Hariharan said that the rapport between them has also aided them. "We both are fast movers on the court and our communication during matches is also good as we're friends and I have known him for a while. He understands Tamil while I understand Malayalam, so that helps us a great deal."
The massive influence of senior compatriots Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, with whom they train with on a daily basis, has also pushed both the youngsters.
"We are training under the same roof and sparring with them. Satwik anna (brother) was close to us. And he would encourage us to come to the academy. We trusted him and now things are going well."
As stated earlier, this is just the beginning for Hariharan. The 22-year-old felt that with more matches like the one on Tuesday, they can gradually climb the ranking ladder. "Gradually we'll come up. Once we gain more exposure, we'll get to our opponents and learn how to deal with them. We'll also learn about conditions etc. After a few matches, maybe we'll get more results," he noted. "Experience is the key. For individual category or doubles, if we gain experience and if we play as per strategy, then we can win against anybody," he added.
Up next for Hariharan and Arjun are Lian Weikeng and Wang Chang, 2024 Paris Games medallists and 2023 World Championships bronze winners. On paper, it's a steep ask for the Indians but what counts for them is the experience of facing top-quality opponents.