Former tennis great Vijay Amritraj on Tuesday said that India has a very good chance of winning medals in both men’s and mixed doubles in the 2016 Rio Olympics in Brazil.
“I think Olympics is like an election, which comes once in four years. And generally, tennis being the unseasonal sport as it is played right from January to November every year, the players tend to look more at the next Grand Slam event than looking forward to the Olympics,” Vijay felt.
“Having said this, I must reiterate that India has a tremendous opportunity to win a medal in Rio Olympics given the way the Indians have been performing at the highest level in doubles,” he observed.
“Yes, it is critical for us to have players in men’s and women’s singles, who are in the top 50 at least. Or else we will continue to struggle especially in Davis Cup and the Fed Cups,” he commented.
“Well, what Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis have achieved since March this year has been truly fabulous. They are perfect example in complementing each other. With Sania in the backcourt with her incredible forehand and Hingis with her deft play at the net form a brilliant combination, which is really hard to beat,” Vijay said.
“I must say Hingis has been phenomenal on her come back trail from the beginning of this year. Her achievements are amazing and I must stress here that having beaten Venus Williams twice in singles in the Champions Tennis League (CTL) in the first edition in 2014 and generally performances in the CTL have given her great confidence that she can be a force to reckon with,” he said.
Referring to the future of Indian tennis, Vijay said the best part being lot of interest and a strong belief amongst kids that they could take up the sport as a serious profession. “The kind of coaching centres that have come across India is amazing. In a way, they are also providing livelihood to many former players too who are into coaching,” he said.
