Bengaluru: Bengaluru’s own Abhimanyu Vannemreddy became the first Indian to earn a wild card for the French Open junior singles, by virtue of winning the Rendez-Vous qualification event at Roland Garros in Paris on Saturday.
Vannemreddy battled past Japan’s Hikaru Shiraishi 6-1, 4-6, 6-1 under the torrid Parisian heat to enter the main draw of the feted clay court slam, the junior event of which begins from June 4.
The 17-year-old handled the conditions better than his Japanese counterpart, as he cruised through in the first set. Shiraishi called in a medical timeout as he fought exasperating nose bleeds but rallied back to take the second set. The mercury got the better of him in the end as Abhimanyu wrapped up the third and his place in the main draw with aplomb.
“Hikaru fought very hard on an unusually hot day in Paris and was a worthy opponent,” the local lad said in a conversation with this newspaper. Upon surpassing the feats of the previous four Indians who had taken part in the two previous editions of Rendez-Vous but failed to reach the finals, Abhimanyu expressed satisfaction at his achievement.
“It feels brilliant to win the qualifier. I had matches in Kolkata and Pune and was lucky to even play in Paris after losing the regional finals in New Delhi (the winning finalist Siddanth Banthia pulled out with an injury). It’s not every day you can do your country proud.”
Abhimanyu, who started playing tennis at the tender age of six in Tanzania, has been warming to the clay court circuit, and it’s the only surface he’s been playing on for the past two months.
“I have got used to the conditions on clay. I hadn’t played a lot before on clay before, but it’s a surface I have picked up on.”Under the tutelage of former Davis Cupper Vishal Uppal, sky is the limit for Abhimanyu as he treads on uncharted territory. His targets or lack thereof, reflect just that. “I don’t have any result-orientated targets for this tournament as I find that self-limiting. I just want to go out there and give my 100% always,” he quipped.
