Indian tennis shone as bright as it could in the last week and it had Martina Hingis for company. There was Leander Paes who won the Mixed Doubles trophy at Wimbledon paired with her. Sania Mirza won the Women’s Doubles and she too had Hingis as her partner. The one who didn’t was Sumit Nagal, winner of the Junior Doubles. He was a sidelight in this effusion of victories but not a minor one. Look far back enough and you will find plenty of reports in the newspapers of great Indian sportsmen like Paes, Saurav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar when they were 17 as well. But the full scale of their talent only unfurled little by little over the years.
A number of factors have to come together for a 17-year-old Indian to win an international medal in tennis. A decade ago, the necessary condition would have been a family that was enlightened enough to value sports education and then wealthy enough to provide the right training and facilities for one of their young talented members. It is an attitude that has seeped down into India’s middle-class and the story of Indian tennis’ success is also one of gradual egalitarianism. It has not spread through and through like cricket, making class redundant, but even so, tennis is no longer just the preserve of gated communities and elite schools.
Nagal is the son of a primary school teacher in Delhi. His father’s acquaintance with the sport could at best be termed sketchy. He never played the game, but when he saw his son’s interest and ability—a local coach suggested that Nagal should attend special training—decided that the money from the family budget spent on tennis camps would be worth it.
The second element that comes into play in the making of Nagal is capitalism and the free market. In sports, that comes in the form of agencies that manage sportsmen. They didn’t really exist before economic liberalisation in India, but then, after the first tryst with cricket, such ventures made a natural progression to a variety of other sports. One of the biggest sports management firms in India is Globosport, started by Mahesh Bhupathi, erstwhile partner and winner of so many international Doubles titles, mostly with Paes. It was Bhupathi who spotted the 10-year-old Nagal at a tennis academy and impressed with his talent began to coach him. Since then, under the management of Globosport, Nagal has been training in countries like Germany and Canada. He was exposed to the best practices of coaching and a peer group of the best tennis players to interact with.
Nagal is strong on the forehand, his backhand is double handed and he has a big serve. Before he won this title, his talent had been recognised but it had not really translated into much. Even now in the Singles field, he is yet to make a mark. Vijay Amritraj, one of India’s tennis greats, in a Mumbai Mirror article said that Nagal’s optimum performance would come when he would be 26. That is nine years away, and, in one sense, it is a prophecy that he might never be at the very top in Singles. Boris Becker had already won his first Wimbledon Singles title at the age of 17. But Indian tennis has found its niche in the Doubles and Mixed Doubles versions of the game and we are undoubtedly one of the leaders now. This is the tradition that Nagal has inherited. While purists might argue that it is a cop-out, every form of the game—Singles or Doubles— has its own dynamics and winning is not easy in either.
There have been instances of precocious young tennis players who burn out on the big stage. Nagal’s victory ensures him little. But there is a possibility that after the Paes-Bhupathi generation, he might be the one who helms the next era of Indian tennis.
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