31-year old Somdev Devvarman, who had been India's flag-bearer on the ATP World Tour in singles for six years, recently retired from professional tennis. In a sea of doubles players, Devvarman’s success at the top in singles was as a breath of fresh air for the country's tennis fans.
Read more: Somdev Devvarman announces retirement
Unfortunately, Somdev had to finally give in to injuries, the game-changer being the one to his shoulder in 2012. That particular injury came at a very wrong time, when Somdev had just reached his career high ranking of 62, looking all set to break the top 50.
Career Highlights
Reached a career high ATP Ranking of 62, the best by an Indian in the last 25 years
Received the Arjuna Award in 2011 for his contribution to Indian Tennis
- Won the Gold Medal in Men's Singles at the 2010 Commonwealth Games
- Won Gold Medals in both Men's Singles & Men's Doubles at the 2010 Asian Games
- Was nominated for the "ATP Comeback Player of the Year" award in 2013
- The only Indian player to reach the final of the Chennai Open
- Reached 2 ATP tour level finals(Chennai and Johannesburg)
- Has had wins over top players like Milos Raonic, Carlos Moya, Marin Cilic, Ivo Karlovic, John Isner, Marcos Baghdatis and Janko Tipsarevic.
A Look Back at His Career
Somdev first made news in India by putting together a dream run to the final of the Chennai Open in 2009. The lad from Tripura beat former world number one Carlos Moya & the then world no. 25, Ivo Karlovic, on his way to the final, where he lost a close match to Marin Cilic. Somdev made the final of a similar ATP 250 level tournament in Johannesburg in 2011, losing to local favorite Kevin Anderson.
But much before actually making his mark on the ATP World Tour, Somdev had given a huge indication of his potential whilst representing the University of Virginia at the NCAA Championships in the USA.
Devvarman, a tennis sensation in college, won back to back NCAA titles in 2007 and 2008, one of only 3 players to have done so since 1950. This feat included a victory over top seed John Isner in 2009, with Isner later going on to become a top 10 ATP player. Somdev had also reached the NCAA final in 2006, thus making him the only player in NCAA history to make three consecutive finals.
Somdev has made it to the 2nd round of all the four Grand Slams, a feat that not many Indian players have been able to achieve. Somdev's best result at the Masters 1000 level is reaching the 4th round at Indian Wells in 2011, losing a tight match to 14-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal. He's also made it to the 3rd round of the Miami Masters not just once, but twice, in 2011 and 2013.
Playing Style
In modern day tennis, you need weapons – for instance, big serve and a big forehand. But Somdev had neither. Standing at 5ft 11in, which is a modest height for a tennis player, all he had was a huge penchant for fight. Somdev's weapons were his legs, arguably among the best on tour.
He could chase down balls all day long, from one corner of the court to the other, wearing his opponents down. His biggest strengths were his speed off the court, and the fighting spirit that he possessed in abundance.
These were always on full display whenever he represented India at the Davis Cup, the five set format being the ideal for Somdev to excel. There are players who just translate to a different level while playing for the country. Somdev was definitely one of those. He regularly beat players way above his league at the Davis Cup, leading India to the World Group on two occasions.
To have achieved what he has with his limited weaponry, is no mean feat. He could well be considered "David Ferrer of Indian Tennis", a grinding counterpuncher, one who uses the pace off the opponent's strokes to keep the rally going, until the opponent gives in.
His mental fortitude might have made up for the lack of fire in his strokes, but there was no shortage of fire in his belly. One needs to have grit to hang around and trouble the top players regularly, especially with a game like his, which never allowed him any free points on his serve.
But the fact that Somdev managed to do it with aplomb, proves what the man is built of.
The Road Ahead for Indian Tennis
Somdev's absence has left a huge void in the Indian Davis Cup setup. Now that Somdev will not be returning to professional tennis, the responsibility will fall on the shoulders of Saketh Myneni, Yuki Bhambri and youngsters like Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan, who have both shown promise on the tour.
Interestingly, Bhambri, Nagal and Ramanathan have all had time to spend with Devvarman over the last few years, and have been able to glean the best of his skills. He has set benchmarks for the younger generation, and his advice will be especially valuable for a player like Sumit Nagal, who, of a similar frame as Somdev, stands at around 5ft 10in.
Somdev recently donned the coach's role for Prajnesh Gunneswaran, a reserve player in the Indian Davis Cup team, working with him for a couple of weeks before the Chennai Open. 30-year-old Devvarman has suggested at press conferences that he might be interested in taking up the role of coaching the Indian Davis Cup Team in the near future.
To have a man with as much experience at the Davis Cup as Devvarman does would be incredibly useful for the side in looking to progress to the World Group Stage of the tournament
