Longines hosts French Open trophy in India in presence of Yuki Bhambri

Courtesy of his impressive run, Yuki Bhambri made it to the main draw of the French Open to be held in May-June this year. He was extremely thrilled to be up close and personal with the French Open singles trophies, which were recently showcased at the Longines Boutique in New Delhi.

The former junior World No. 1, Yuki was honoured with the Conquest Roland Garros Timepiece by Longines, a truly magnificent timepiece, which embraces all the values of the brand, namely tradition, performance, and elegance. It was a fitting tribute to Yuki and is sure to bring him good luck.

Amidst the fanfare, a delighted Yuki answered all the questions from the media. He was honest and spoke with flair and confidence, not thinking twice before sharing his opinion. "I will play warm-up event in Geneva (last red clay event before French Open). Also, I will reach there one week before (to get acclimatized). The traditional French Open courts are not that slow, compared to other clay courts. I have nothing to lose," Yuki said.

The former Youth Olympics Games Silver medalist recently spearheaded his way into the top 100. He eased his way past fellow Indian Ramkumar Ramanathan at the 2018 Santaizi ATP Challenger to jump to World No. 83 position. Earlier, he had defeated World No. 12, Lucas Pouille in March. Yuki modestly credited his success to Stephen Koon, who he starting working with recently.

Neha, a correspondent of Longines, told Sportskeeda, "We will sponsor the Longines Future Tennis Aces (LFTA), which is an Under-13 competition that happens in 10 countries." The winners of this tournament get a chance to go to Paris and get trained by tennis patrons or tennis stars. They also get to spend time with Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf.

For those looking to make a mark in the Under-18, there is the Roland-Garros Junior Wild-Card Competition by Longines. The event also marked the launch of its fourth edition in India. Besides India, this competition takes place in China and Brazil. The winners of these three countries then battle it out against each other and the ultimate winner is declared. This winner then gets a direct entry to the Junior Roland Garros which makes this a tremendous opportunity for the youth to make a mark and get recognized.

Adrien Groscolas, the India activations coordinator for Roland-Garros, revealed the forthcoming plans and events of the Roland-Garros for India. Adrien said, "Tennis is picking up fast in India. Roland-Garros Amateur Series by Longines will be starting in Bangalore next week. Anyone, even a raw talent can register for the Amateur series. The winners of this event will get a chance to watch the Roland Garros in Paris.

"There is also the Roland-Garros Junior Wild-Card Competition by Longines (under-18) being organized by the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association right now. The winner of this competition will fly to Paris to compete with the winners of Brazil and China. The eventual winners will then get a direct entry into the main draw of the Junior Competition. The elite competition can provide a huge leap to any player as it provides a big platform to play with the best of the best."

There is a lot of positive movement happening in the tennis circuit in India and Longines as a brand has been pivotal in accelerating the movement.

At the event, we had the chance to speak with Indian tennis fans, who were ecstatic as they got a chance to get clicked with Yuki at the Longines event.

Shubhank, one of the fans at the event, shared his verdict on the upcoming French Open, "Roger Federer will be missing out on the French Open as he wants to be conscious of upcoming tournaments. The clay-court tournament is certainly one of the most taxing on the body, and with Federer out, I do not see anyone challenging juggernaut that is Rafael Nadal to win his 11th French Open."

Another fan Abhilash says,"I just want Yuki to go through to the semifinals. It will still be a great achievement and will ensure a wave of enthusiasm in the Indian fans"