NEW DELHI: Following in the footsteps of India’s illustrious tennis players, Niki K Poonacha and Sowjanya Bavisetti were recently crowned national champions after their victories at the Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship in New Delhi. When asked how it feels to be at the top of the domestic circuit, the first thought that crossed their minds was a mixture of hope and dread.
“Maybe now getting sponsors on board will become a little easier but you never know,” both the players said. This feeling stems from the fact that playing tennis requires financial support which not everybody can get access to as well as the reduced prestige of the national championship, something even former doubles World No 1 Sania Mirza had alluded to.
“While growing up, becoming national champion was the biggest goal one would set and it is a bit sad to see how the tournament is treated nowadays. I hope that the meet regains its lost prestige and more and more children take up the sport,” she had said.
Niki, who trains at Rohan Bopanna’s academy in Bengaluru, recounts how difficult it was when he started out. “I had enrolled in the Arena Tennis Academy in Alicante when I had started out. My parents — both central government employees — had to sell a lot of their property to fund my training. Soon, resources ran out and I had to come back to the country. I did not even have a coach before Rohan stepped in,” the 24-year-old revealed.
Meanwhile, Sowjanya, who has tried to find sponsors through a variety of channels, compares this search to a talent hunt show. “It is almost like you have to sell yourself. Most times, they have not heard of you or never seen you play. It can get highly annoying but that is the life we live.”
For both the athletes, playing means having to adjust with the money in hand, searching for the cheapest flights and having to make do. After so many years, they have gotten used to it but the dreams of a better future continue to burn bright.
“I mostly do not stay in official hotels when travelling abroad. We have to live off one pay cheque and then wait for the next. Even in Hyderabad, I need to travel quite a lot to even go to the gym. But I hope this victory signals a change. Now I can go and introduce myself as the national champ and maybe, just maybe, things can go north,” Sowjanya added.