With Novak Djokovic’s fate still hanging in balance at the time of going to print, former Indian tennis star Somdev Devvarman said the Serbian champion serving for his record 10th Australian Open and 21st Grand Slam title and going past Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, made this Australian Open something to look forward to and didn’t want the “attention to be away from tennis”. “It is going to be fantastic,” the Assam boy told t2oS when we caught up with him on Thursday evening. Somdev, who “actually started playing sports” from Kolkata, also chatted about his days at the “Happy Slam” and why pressure will always define sports at the top level. Excerpts.
What are you expecting this Australian Open to be like?
Different feelings to an Australian Open for obvious reasons. That being said, I don’t want the attention to be away from tennis because it is going to be fantastic. The fact that Novak’s (Djokovic) is in the draw, Rafa (Rafael Nadal) is back and he is in the draw and the fact that you have all of these next-gen with (Daniil) Medvedev, who is a US Open champion, and (Stefanos) Tsitsipas, who has done well here, you have Jannik Sinner who is coming up, you have Casper Ruud, Andy Murray, (Matteo) Berrettini... so, a lot of good players.
On the women’s side too, there’s Ash Barty, Naomi Osaka, (Barbora) Krejcikova, (Elina) Svitolina, (Elena) Rybakina, (Emma) Raducanu who is playing sensational tennis right now, (Garbine) Muguruza, (Iga) Swiatek.... So, you have a lot of action coming up. I am just excited to see how the whole thing unfolds.
Considering Djokovic is nine-time champion, defending champion and that he could go past Roger (Federer) and Rafa at this event to having 21 (Grand) Slams, that makes it very exciting indeed for tennis fans. Even in the women’s as well, to see how Osaka has bounced back, to see if Barty can win a title on her home soil, the number one in the world.
What are your memories of the Australian Open?
I have played the tournament a few times. It was my first junior event as well. I won a round in 2013 and lost a five-setter to Jerzy Janowicz. I also once played doubles with Prakash (Amritraj) and won a round there as well. All in all, my time in Australia as a player has always been amazing.
There is a reason it is called the Happy Slam. Players really enjoyed being there and the hospitality we received from Tennis Australia was top-notch, just the way they handled every situation has been really good and the communication and the support they had for the players in difficult times, they have always stepped up and made their facilities better. Just the overall experience as a player, you are always happy to go to Melbourne. So, nothing but good memories at the Aussie Open.
What makes Australians a breed apart? They are such champions...
Probably a mix of a bunch of different things, but to begin with, they probably have a strong sporting culture at the core. That can also be seen in how they are generally among the leaders in terms of sports science and innovation.
Australian Institute of Sports is, I am sure, one of the best in the world. They find new ways to train and get their athletes better. And of course the culture as well. All the way from cricket to football... swimming... they are very competitive, if not excelling at it.
Their tennis history goes back several years. What Davis Cup means to them and how much everyone puts into it... all the way from Tony Roche and Rod Laver in the ’60s and ’70s and moving on to the ’80s and ’90s... then you had Pat Rafter and Lleyton Hewitt. The Woodies (Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde) were also huge inspirations as well. Tennis Australia always found a way to involve its former players in some capacity. The sporting culture makes the country a powerhouse of world sports.
Last year we had Naomi Osaka raise awareness about the mental well-being of a professional athlete and this year we have seen the likes of Serena Williams and Roger Federer pull out because they are recovering. Do you think they are setting the tone for future athletes and it’s important they do it?
I don’t know... it’s a little too early to tell. From my understanding, pressure has always been there in professional sport at any level, but then when you go to the highest level, there’s definitely going to be added pressure.
Look at any sport. Any champion who has come through the ranks will tell you that the margins are very small, the difference between winning and losing is very close. For that reason, when you have two people at the peak of their athletic ability competing to see who is the best, I think that environment calls for pressure.
I don’t think that part of sport is ever going to really change. If it’s 0-0 and there is a penalty in extra time, no matter who’s taking that penalty, there is going to be pressure. The question is how he or she is going to handle that situation and the repercussions of succeeding or failing.
Coming back to your question, the world has changed and athletes will change according to that. In the previous days, you didn’t have this kind of attention with social media and that rapidly changed. We see how youngsters deal with it and it is different from 20-30 years ago.
To find out who’s the best in pro sports, that’s the essence of sports and that will always bring out people fighting hard, digging deep, crazy stories of how they reached the status of conquering the world of whatever sport they played. That’s always going to have pressure and the way people deal with it is going to be different.
What has kept you sane in the last two years?
(Laughs) Good conversations with friends I guess. My family. I spend a lot of good time with my wife and my interest in my hobby like music.