I know
of the MA Chidambaram stadium fondly the Chepauk and many other smaller ones
like the Marina stadium, University Union, Gurunanak, AC Tech, India Pistons
stadium, Pachaiyappas and more….. places where cricket matches are played. Then there is the famous Nehru stadium [L
& T stadium] for all athletic events and indoor games- not much about SDAT Tennis Stadium in Chennai, built on the occasion of the SAF Games in
1995 by the Tamil Nadu Government. It has since played the host to the Chennai
Open tennis event annually since 1997. Chennai
open is one of the premier tennis event, the largest of India since 1996. The event has attracted some of the best
names in the tennis circuit since its inception and has featured stars of the tennis including Rafael
Nadal, Boris Becker, Carlos Moya, Richard Krajicek, Patrick Rafter, Yvgeny
Kafelnikov, Byron Black and India's own Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi. The
sponsors have changed and so also the names ~ Mcdowell, Gold Flake, Tata and
now Chennai open with new title sponsor – Aircel.
A couple of years back, watched a
Semi final match - Johan Tipsarevic
played little known [to me] A.
Bedene. Read that before this match
Bedene has never been in a Semi finals.
Aljaž Bedene is a right hander – he had defeated 4th seed Stanislas Wawrinka in QF to gain a
maiden appearance in Semis. Though he
lost today, he won many fans for his sterling performance.
Now South Asia's only ATP world tour event, the
Aircel Chennai Open 2016 is on ! On Day 1, centre court action started with
Croatian Qualifier Ante Pavic taking on Nicolas Almagro of Spain. In the second centre court match of the day,
it was ATP's youngest top 50 player, Borna Coric coming out all guns blazing as he won the first set
in a tie-break. Day 3 started on a mixed
note. Chennai debutant, world no. 12 Kevin Anderson withdrew from the
tournament with a left knee injury. Taking his place was lucky loser, Alexander
Kudryavtsev who will now face local lad, Ramkumar Ramanathan in the singles
second round.
Read this
interesting report in Indian Express about the man in the photo. A Nelson of ranking places is the difference
between the Aljaz Bedene of this year, and the Aljaz Bedene that became the
first qualifier to reach the final of the Chennai Open last year. The 2015
season, that saw him start as 156 in the world, was one of consistency and
calculated growth. This year, armed with a world number 45 rank, he started in
the main draw of the SDAT Tennis Stadium. But, along with the confidence he’s
brought with him through the successes of last season, he also involuntarily
brings a question that has constantly poked his mind for the last few months – will
he ever get to play for his adoptive country Great Britain in the Davis Cup?
It was a question
that bothered him when he was declared ineligible to play for the team that had
reached the final of the Davis Cup last November. As the second best ranked player
in Britain behind only Andy Murray, the Slovenia-born player was expected to
boost Great Britain’s chances of a win. They did get the win for the first time
in 79 years, but without Bedene who was deemed ineligible. The International
Tennis Federation (ITF) had set up a rule stating that a player who has
represented one country in the Davis Cup may not play for another despite being
granted citizenship. Incidentally, Bedene did play for his native country,
Slovenia three times between 2010 and 2012. The rule however was brought into
place on January 1, 2015, which Bedene earlier claimed was after he had lodged
his first application.
The decision to
switch nationalities though was actually made back in 2012, long before the ITF
could pass the law that currently hinders him. “I wanted to change in 2012. But
it took a few years more because you need to be a resident for seven years,” he
says. Nonetheless, the case isn’t over. The hearing has been pushed back to
when the ITF board of directors next meet in March. There is a hope for Bedene,
but there is still the disappointment of not getting to play the final last
year.
At the current
tournament in Chennai, Bedene brushed aside seventh seeded Canadian Vasek
Pospisil in straight sets when they met during the first round of the main
draw. The only local, city boy Ramkumar
Ramanathan is living a dream. He got a wild card to play the Chennai Open,
stunned World No. 98 Daniel Gimeno-Traver in the first round on Tuesday, and
now has a fair chance of making the quarterfinals following the pull-out of his
scheduled second-round opponent World No. 12 Kevin Anderson. Anderson, the
second seed here and one of the favourites to make the final, announced on
Wednesday that he had to withdraw due to a knee injury. The tournament
organizers drafted in Russian World No.164 Alexander Kudryavtsev as the `lucky
loser' to play the match against Ramkumar. The last Indian to make the quarterfinals of
Chennai Open was Somdev Devvarman in 2009 and there's already a sense of
anticipation around Ramkumar after his superb Tuesday performance that he would
do the same.
For
now, a win on Thursday and an entry into the quarterfinals of Chennai Open will
do Ramkumar a world of good. Vanakkam Chennai !
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
7th Jan
2016.
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