EXCLUSIVE: Taking cue from Bopanna, Sriram Balaji won’t take medal pressure on Olympics debut

New Delhi: In February this year at the Bengaluru Open, N Sriram Balaji was asked about the potential pairing with Rohan Bopanna in the men’s doubles event at the Paris Olympics. The Coimbatore-based tennis player played down the question, citing ‘Rohan will be the right person to take a call’.

Three months later in May, Rohan informed the All India Tennis Association (AITA) that Sriram Balaji was his preferred choice for the Olympics and the federation obliged to it. What allowed the player from Coorg to have such discretion? It was his rule in the top 10 rankings of ATP men’s doubles by the cut-off date (June 10).

Yuki Bhambri (World No.54) and Sriram Balaji (World No.67) were the top names to partner the 44-year-old Rohan in Paris. But Rohan gave the nod to the 34-year-old Balaji thanks to his recent success on the ATP Challenger tour, having won the Sardegna Open in April in Cagliari, Italy, and finished as runner-up at the Perugia Challenger in June. Both the events were played on clay courts along with German partner Andre Begemann.

The other possible factor was when Rohan and Balaji were on opposite sides of the court during the third round of the French Open. Balaji and Miguel Ángel Reyes-Varela gave a tremendous fight to Rohan and his Australian partner Matthew Ebden before going down 7-6 (7-2), 3-6 and 6-7 (8-10) in a gruelling contest. Sriram Balaji has a strong serve and has a great ability to return the volleys besides his quick footwork, which is important on clay courts.

Not that Yuki never paired with Rohan before. They teamed for the Asian Games in Hangzhou and were positioned as top seeds for the event. But a shocking second-round exit to lower-ranked Uzbekistan pair of Sergey Fomin and Khumoyun Sultanov perhaps didn’t materialise for the Paris Games.

Rohan and Balaji will face the local pair of Eduoard Roger-Vasselin and Fabian Reboul in the first round on Saturday at the Roland Garros. While Rohan will be playing in his third Olympics event, Sriram will make his first mark at the Games.

“They are very good players like Roger-Vasselin has been like top 5 in the world. Reboul also playing well in the circuit with different partner. Rohan knows a lot about Roger-Vasselin because he has played with him before. We both are doing our homework against our opponents. Tomorrow its going to be interesting to play against the French team in Paris,” Balaji told News9 Sports from Paris on the eve of the matchday.

“I arrived on Sunday like five days before. We got enough practice and getting used to the conditions here. Everyday the court conditions are different. The first couple of days it was hot. Today, because of the rain, the conditions are slower. We are getting ready for tomorrow,” he added.

‘Balaji should play his natural game’: Coach

​Balachandran Mannikkath has been a childhood coach of Rohan Bopanna when he was 15 and he is the current coach of Sriram Balaji. The Bengaluru-based veteran coach will be the coach of the Indian men’s doubles pair at the Paris Games. The coach believes that Rohan, with his immense amount of experience, will be the most suitable partner for his current ward at an event of the Olympics’ stature.

“Rohan has played enough. He is a very experienced player and Bala (Balaji) also had a good run in the French Open this year. So we are in the same conditions, the atmosphere and the court and the stadium. Rohan, obviously with his experience, knows how to play with different partners. So when he chose Balaji as his partner, he is clear on how he is going to combine by using Bala’s strengths and his own strengths alongside,” the renowned Indian coach said.

The coach believes that Balaji shouldn’t take pressure but rather play his natural game and adjust according to the situation.

“For Balaji, mainly it will be like how freely he can play his game. He serves a volley a lot of times. His position can be changed based on the serve and what is best at that particular point. During practice, all those things were taken into consideration. For Balaji, it’s just that he has to play his normal game and no pressure on him,” the coach said.

This won’t be the first time that Rohan and Balaji will join forces on a court. They first teamed in the 2017 Davis Cup tie against Uzbekistan, defeating Farrukh Dustov and Sanjar Fayziev in straight sets (6-2 6-4 6-1). But a seven-year gap doesn’t put them at that level. They played at the Hamburg Open last week but bowed out in the Round of 16.

However, Rohan has worked with Balaji in his doubles programme and has been a mentor to his junior.

“He also told me two days ago, there is no pressure. Winning or losing doesn’t matter. It’s all about how free we play. Once we start playing free, we play our A game also,” Balaji mentioned.

India hasn’t won an Olympic medal in tennis with Leander Paes’ bronze medal at the Atlanta Games, United States, in 1996 being the only achievement for Indian tennis players. Can Bopanna and Balaji end that 28-year medal drought this time?

‘Obviously, we are going for the medal but at the same time, I just want to focus on my basics. I just want to think about what I can do better and what every day in the matches I can improve.  I am focused on a day-to-day basis,” Balaji concluded.

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 EXCLUSIVE: In May, Rohan Bopanna informed the All India Tennis Association (AITA) that Sriram Balaji was his preferred choice for the Olympics and the federation obliged to it.  Tennis Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today