PUNE: Monday’s loss, in the final qualifying round of the $25,000 ITF KPIT-MSLTA Cup women’s tennis event at the Deccan Gymkhana, did not hurt Tejasvi Kate as it should have.
“There is some disappointment, I can’t say no,” said the 21-year-old from Pimpri, after going down 4-6, 1-6 to compatriot Shreya Tatavarthy. “After yesterday’s matches (back to back first and second round) I didn’t have enough energy. But I came here expecting nothing.
“This is after all my first tournament since Covid (pandemic). I started training only last month.”
Tejasvi is the best example of a typical Indian player who has to reconcile career dreams with the harsh realities staring in her face.
“I think I should have done more (by now). I have not been upto the mark,” Tejasvi said, taking a critical look at herself.
“I am 21, I was expecting to be in the top-5 in the country by now. But then I am not financially strong and I don’t have sponsorship because I don’t have a higher ranking.”
Tejasvi began playing tennis at the age of nine and was tutored by Manoj Kusalkar in her early years. Then, at the suggestion of her mentor Manoj Devlakar at Dnyan Prabodhini School in Nigdi, she began training under Hemant Bendrey around seven years ago.
That change meant Tejasvi had to travel more than 20 kilometres one way by bus from Pimpri to the PYC Hindu Gymkhana.
“That was the worst part of it. So many days while returning home, there would be no place to sit in the bus and I would stand for one and a half hours all the way,” she said. “I have cried, asking myself ‘when will this all end’. If only I had had some sponsorship, I would have taken a flat nearby.”
But, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
“One day, it had rained heavily and I was completely drenched. And I got no place to sit in the bus. I had a match next morning and I told myself that I must win to make it all worth it.”
She lost the match the following day, and she was devastated.
“I asked myself why am I suffering so much. But I thought about it two-three days later and realised that whoever has become successful has gone through this. We only see their success but not the challenges they had faced,” she said.
So, what has kept Tejasvi going?
“I like the feeling of being on a tennis court. I like the sound of hitting the ball and I like to play all the shots,” she said. “Sometimes I have felt that I should stop, but my parents have kept pushing me.
“Tennis has definitely made me stronger. I have learnt to deal with things and keep moving.
“In any career, it is important to keep the mental balance and be stable in any situation. I think that’s 50 per cent of the reason for success.”
“There is some disappointment, I can’t say no,” said the 21-year-old from Pimpri, after going down 4-6, 1-6 to compatriot Shreya Tatavarthy. “After yesterday’s matches (back to back first and second round) I didn’t have enough energy. But I came here expecting nothing.
“This is after all my first tournament since Covid (pandemic). I started training only last month.”
Tejasvi is the best example of a typical Indian player who has to reconcile career dreams with the harsh realities staring in her face.
“I think I should have done more (by now). I have not been upto the mark,” Tejasvi said, taking a critical look at herself.
“I am 21, I was expecting to be in the top-5 in the country by now. But then I am not financially strong and I don’t have sponsorship because I don’t have a higher ranking.”
Tejasvi began playing tennis at the age of nine and was tutored by Manoj Kusalkar in her early years. Then, at the suggestion of her mentor Manoj Devlakar at Dnyan Prabodhini School in Nigdi, she began training under Hemant Bendrey around seven years ago.
That change meant Tejasvi had to travel more than 20 kilometres one way by bus from Pimpri to the PYC Hindu Gymkhana.
“That was the worst part of it. So many days while returning home, there would be no place to sit in the bus and I would stand for one and a half hours all the way,” she said. “I have cried, asking myself ‘when will this all end’. If only I had had some sponsorship, I would have taken a flat nearby.”
But, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
“One day, it had rained heavily and I was completely drenched. And I got no place to sit in the bus. I had a match next morning and I told myself that I must win to make it all worth it.”
She lost the match the following day, and she was devastated.
“I asked myself why am I suffering so much. But I thought about it two-three days later and realised that whoever has become successful has gone through this. We only see their success but not the challenges they had faced,” she said.
So, what has kept Tejasvi going?
“I like the feeling of being on a tennis court. I like the sound of hitting the ball and I like to play all the shots,” she said. “Sometimes I have felt that I should stop, but my parents have kept pushing me.
“Tennis has definitely made me stronger. I have learnt to deal with things and keep moving.
“In any career, it is important to keep the mental balance and be stable in any situation. I think that’s 50 per cent of the reason for success.”