It is a question that many prominent faces inevitably face. Pardon the triteness but this writer couldn’t resist the temptation. Throughout the conversation with Vijay Amritraj, I sought the right moment to ask this –– what drives you even at this age?
I was pretty certain that money or fame would have been the answer had I asked somebody else this question about Vijay. Not to say that they cease to be factors in his case. But as he says, he doesn’t have to do a lot of the things he does now.
For all practical purposes, Vijay has been the face of Indian tennis. A past tennis legend, a charming broadcaster, occasional actor and recently the founder of the Champions Tennis League (CTL) in India –– there are ample prefixes for him.
Importantly, it remains likely that Vijay will continue to don various hats in the coming times. Especially after the inaugural season of the CTL, he has personal reasons to develop the product.
“Prakash (Vijay’s elder son) working with me is a huge factor. He understands it (the development of CTL and all things tennis) as well as me. It’s a special feeling to work with him. My second son (Vikram) has a year left in his law school. If he joins us, it’ll be a great motivating factor too. Kids usually don’t like to work with their parents, so it’s great. It allows me to spend time with them. While they were growing up, the advantage of playing tennis was that it kept us together.”
A life spent travelling and doing various things naturally exposed Vijay to much more than he had thought. It also made him believe a tennis league in India could be a viable product.
“My first trip overseas was over 45 years ago. In this time, the slowest development has been in sports. Anand (his elder brother) and I were the only professional athletes in any sport, including cricket. I’m elated that so many leagues have started in my lifetime. The players are earning a living. Athletes who have represented India haven’t had a comfortable life post-retirement (generally). That’s a concern for me. We are among the few blessed ones. Tennis gave me everything I wanted and more.”
Disappointments remain however — the biggest of them being the non-emergence of a top singles player in India.
“It has been eons since we had anyone in top 50. That’s unacceptable. Nobody wants to be a good doubles player at the start. Doubles is good to lengthen your career.”
Vijay knows he can’t change it alone, even if he starts a league that gives Indian players to mix it up with foreign stars. “The game changes every five years. I can tell you how to strategise. I can’t tell you how to play the game. Even Prakash can’t do that. The game has moved on from his time as well.”
Before the CTL, Vijay had sent a two-minute video message to the foreign players inviting them to see “India at its best.” There’s little doubt that his experience as a broadcaster must have given him the required comfort level to make a good case for the CTL.
Judging by the players he attracted to the country, the ploy worked. Vijay’s persuasiveness and easy charm had already taken him to sectors that lay way beyond the tennis world.
Serving as a “messenger of peace” for former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan remains a major highlight. It was also a result of the way Vijay was mentored by his parents. A childhood marred by various health problems was overcome thanks to the special assistance of his mother who used to take notes from the school and teach him at the hospital.
One realises that Vijay seldom seems flustered due to the variety of experiences that inform his actions. Yet, there’s one situation that would still put him under pressure.
“When I was playing, it all boiled down to you. It’s all you, you, you. Everything outside, when I left the sport, was about team effort. It’s an original challenge in its own way. It’s important you don’t panic. You panic at 3-4, 30-40.”
