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Somdev Devvarman recently had his say on the Indian tennis contingent going for the upcoming Asian Games 2023 being held in Hangzhou, China. India will be sending some of their best players for the tournament.
In a media interaction, Somdev spoke about how Indian tennis is in a precarious position and needs to improve by leaps and bounds. He praised Ankita Raina and Karman Kaur Thandi, who have been impressive in recent times and will be part of the Indian contingent going for the Asian Games 2023.
"India is in a precarious place when it comes to professional tennis," Somdev said. "We aren't really knocking on the door of the top 100 yet. It's just a fact. The rankings don't lie. Ankita has proved that she can win at the main level. Karman has good potential. She ran into a tough draw. She has the firepower. Sumit is coming off a hip injury as well."
Continuing on the topic of Asian Games 2023, Somdev reasoned that India will not be starting off as favourites but have the potential to pull off upsets. He reckons a gold medal would be an exemplary achievement.
"How are they going to shape up in China for Asian Games 2023 is another question. Just based on how strong Asian tennis is at the moment. We are not going to be favourites. That's the unfortunate reality of it. We do have the quality to create a couple of upsets. A gold medal would be off the charts. If any Indian won a gold medal, [it] would be a huge achievement," Somdev said.
Commenting on the Indian squad for Asian Games 2023, Somdev reckons the selectors had a pretty straightforward job as they picked the best talents in the country. He feels that if the contingent returns with two or more medals from tennis at Asian Games 2023, it will be a successful outing for them.
"Squad looks good. Pretty straightforward. The selection committee did not have too hard of a job to do because we know who the best players are. I will say both the men and the women's team have a very, very tough task. If we come back with anything more than two medals, it's going to be a really good showing," Somdev said.
"Ankita Raina qualifying for the final round" - Purav Raja recounts high points of Indian tennis ahead of Asian Games 2023
Purav Raja, answering questions posed by Sportskeeda in a media interaction, spoke about how the Asian Games defers greatly from any of the Grand Slams. However, he feels that Ankita Raina doing well at the Asian Games will be pretty important for India.
"When you're talking about Asian Games, you're not talking about the world stage - you're just talking about the Asian players. The women's field will really depend on who shows up for the Asian Games. When you're talking about a Grand Slam, you're talking about the world's biggest stage. So, to do it here is very, very different. I think it's really important for India that Ankita Raina does well at Asian Games," Purav said.
Talking about the high points for Indian tennis in recent times, Ankita Raina was the first that Purav Raja came up with. This was followed by Rohan Bopanna's ranking in men's doubles and Sumit Nagar's recent exploits in ATP tournaments.
"High points are Ankita Raina qualifying for the final round, her being in the top 200 again," said Purav. "Bopanna being in the top 10 in the world - that's a high point. We have 10 players between (rank) 50 and 150 in the world, that's great to see. We've got Sumit Nagar playing good tennis this year - lot of positives."
Ankita Raina failed to qualify for the main draw of the US Open after a loss in the final qualification round. The US Open will be broadcast on the Sony Sports Network in India. India's tennis players will be on show at the Asian Games 2023 as they aim to bring multiple medals from China.
