For almost a decade, Ankita Raina has consistently been India’s top women’s player in singles. In 2018, Ankita had the distinction of winning the Bronze Medal at the Asian Games, alongside breaking into the top 200 in Singles Rankings. The 30-year-old has beaten the likes of Sam Stosur, Sara Errani and Sabine Lisicki in singles. She has also entered the top 100 in Doubles Rankings.
In an exclusive chat with Rev Sportz, the experienced athlete talks about the ups and downs of her career and future goals. She also takes us through the hard grind of a professional tennis player’s journey.
Excerpts:
You have been playing tennis for a long time. So what is the story behind Ankita Raina taking up tennis at such a young age?
I held a tennis racquet for the first time when I was just four years old. My mother, a big sports geek/enthusiast, took part in table tennis and athletics in her college days in Udaipur. Being a sports lover, she first got my brother enrolled in a tennis academy right behind our apartment in Ahmedabad. We could literally see the courts from one of the windows. I was just a toddler and so would tag along with mum and elder brother Ankur, and that’s how I was introduced to the sport.
Any memories of that train journey in Morocco where you were asked to pay a hefty fine?
Oh, yes! That’s a memorable one. I and one of my tennis nemesis back then from Ahmedabad were travelling to Morocco for the first time by ourselves. It was her first time travelling without parents but usual for me. We were about 16, just got on to the train from the airport for our destination and couldn’t exactly figure out our stop and due to language barrier (only French and Arabic are spoken), we missed our stop.
What followed was a line of comic situations as I frantically pulled the chain, in no time the ticket checker was there and tried telling us we have to pay a fine of a couple of thousand Dirhams. My friend started crying and so was I in no time. He took us to the station manager at the last stop, where he saw two Indian girls weeping and did the best thing ever by putting us back in the train and informed us exactly where we should get down. It was quite a journey.
You won four ITF titles in 2012-13 and that was followed by mixed results. How tough is it in the professional world of tennis to paddle through loss of form? Perhaps it can get lonely, lots of travelling…
Firstly, I would like to mention that in tennis not having results for sometime is a phase and not necessarily a loss of form. In tennis, you don’t win everyday or continuously for weeks, it’s not like it doesn’t happen but I’m referring to most of the players. The transition period from juniors to seniors is tricky, at least when I was going through that phase it was all about taking losses and failures and moving forward, being in the process, working hard on improving each day. It is a sport where you have to be mentally prepared for losing more than winning and that too can be without a break because technically our season is on 52 weeks.
Definitely you have to get used to travelling if you decide to take up this profession, since tennis involves a crazy amount of travelling. The nature of the sport is lonely as it’s an individual sport, regardless of the results, even if you are the best or you are losing matches, you are doing it alone. Of course, when you are doing really well, you have a lot of people around you but your core is your team and family. But it’s just you out there all by yourself. Unless you are top 100 in the world rankings, you can’t even balance your expenses and income, so staying alone in hotels is the cheapest option as most players can’t afford a coach or a trainer to travel with them.
In March 2018, you beat Amandine Hesse to win the Gwalior Open and subsequently broke into the top 200 in singles rankings. You also won the bronze medal in the Asian Games after defeating Eudice Chong. Can you look back at those achievements?
Yes, 2018 will always be a special year as I got many firsts during that period. Starting from breaking into top 200, playing first slams, Asian Games medal, which was followed by dengue, which was really really bad. Also, got first WTA 125K win in doubles that year with compatriot Karman, so it was definitely an eventful year. That win in Gwalior was very memorable, I had a good week, my physio Rutuja Patange was also travelling with me that week so that helped as well. I played Amandine in the 2017 WTA Mumbai (Open). So I had an idea of her game and the conditions in Gwalior suited well.
The match against Eudice, I remember I was 0-4 down in the first set and came back to win the set 6-4, followed by 4-0/4-1 if I’m not wrong. That match was goosebumps because it was my very first medal, and everything myself, family, coach and the team had worked for all these years.
On April 24, 2019, you reached dizzying heights after defeating former US Open Champion Sam Stosur in a topsy-turvy match. On the 3rd match point, what did you tell yourself? Can you describe the feeling after winning the game?
That’s another match which I remember very clearly. And it was one of those matches which gives a player that high and confidence, which you need for the highest level of the sport. I just told myself – it’s now or never. I remember so vividly because I had already missed two match points and it was a once in a lifetime kind of opportunity and I went all out for that point. It was literally like a movie scene in terms of how I was feeling because it took some time for me to take it all in. My trainer back then, Gaurav Nijhon was travelling that week with me and we both were extremely pleased. It’s one of my biggest wins and gave me a lot of boost.
In 2021, the former French Open finalist Sara Errani was on a comeback trail, and you went on to beat her in 3 sets in Guadalajara. When you’re trailing in a match, how difficult is it to find the erase button and concentrate on what is in front of you?
I was actually unwell and I remember my coach was back in India. When I spoke to him post match he said he was really proud, because I was down with cold and fever during my travel from home to Guadalajara, and that I showed the character to pull that match off. Actually, it was in 2021 when during the AO series we had to quarantine and we were in a bubble etc. I had reached home after six weeks or so from Australia and then left for Mexico within three days, which was crazy. No wonder, my body couldn’t take it.
During that match, I had gone in with a mindset that I had nothing to lose because I wasn’t fit. But I knew that match against Sara was winnable because I had seen her in the last couple tournaments, so knew about her game. The conditions were tough because it was altitude and the combination with the balls was just unreal, balls were flying like spaceships. So I took one set to adjust to that. Obviously, physically, I wasn’t at my best, but I knew what and how much I needed to push and did just that in the second set. Thankfully, one of my physios, Nidhi Shah, and travelling coach back then, Narendra Nath sir were both there with me. So it was great support when you consider such a long trip and I was sick.
I think tennis really teaches you some important life lessons and one of it is being in the present, because when the ball is coming at you at a certain speed, you have to make several adjustments and decisions in a moment to hit the ball firstly inside the court and with precision, so one can’t be in past or future, need to focus on what’s in front and control.
In 2020, you and Sania Mirza spearheaded India into the Fed Cup playoffs after a 2-1 win over Indonesia. There were seven teams in the Asia Oceania Zone, Group 1. Any particular match that stands out during that fine run?
One of the matches was the first tie against China where I played against Qiang Wang, the top 50 ranked singles player. I played a very high intensity and solid match but lost in three sets, unfortunately. Sania was there, she watched it and told me after the match that she was getting ready for doubles, (and) it would be 1-1 and that I played some good tennis out there. Captain Vishal Uppal was also very proud of my efforts and the way I played.
And of course the doubles that Sania and I won against Indonesia, after I won my singles to make it 1-1. That doubles match will be the most memorable as we made history and qualified for the World Group playoffs for the very first time. I would say in doubles, I got to learn a lot from Sania and (in) that match as well. When the last point was over, I was a bit confused or clueless for a couple seconds and took some time to take it in, that we had done it finally.
There is some pain too. In the Tokyo Olympics, you and Sania were leading 6-0, 5-2 against Kichenok sisters but India ended up losing that match. Can you say a few words on the importance of failing in relation to the learning process?
I just think of that match and take it as there was some lesson yet to learn and it always kills me because I tell myself why the biggest match at such an important arena, why did it have to happen at Olympics? But then it is what it is, that’s life and you have to learn to accept and take things even when it’s not in your control, the result wasn’t in our control. We played our hearts out, every match has ups and downs, that’s a part of it but you just try to find ways to get on the other side, some days you do and other times you learn.
Just because you won yesterday, it doesn’t mean you will today, and similarly because you lost yesterday, it doesn’t mean you will lose again today. That is sport, tennis and it’s so much similar to life, very unpredictable. Similarly when I got Covid twice last year, I had plans etc but then boom! I made it to Australian Open 2022 a day before my match, it was a disaster, not how I wanted to prepare for a slam and not how my coach and I had planned, he was supposed to travel with me again for the first time since Covid and it turned out like this. So the point is, we all can have our plans but life has its own, so one needs to adapt quickly to what’s best and move ahead.
You have a steady baseline game – solid backhand and returns. Anything you have looked to add to your game in the recent past?
Yes, the last 2-3 years I have been working on the serve, speed of serve and we can see improvements now. Serve is a shot where it takes time to see the difference. And since tennis being a repetitive sport, you have to just repeat the action, stroke a million times. Now, when you are in the middle of tournaments (and) playing matches, you need to be careful with how much you are practising right, because if you’ve already played 3 hours singles and doubles and then you go serve a bucket, you won’t be able to lift your arm the next day.
That’s why you need to measure how much you are doing and when, so the progress is slow. This is a sport where you compete 25-30 weeks in a year, so no real time to work separately on (different) aspects. Another thing would be fitness, just getting stronger, focusing a lot on strength and conditioning, because the fitter you’re, the longer you can play. Tennis is a very very physical sport, so I need to keep (working) on this especially.
You had a fine run in the ITF event held in Bengaluru and your singles ranking is back up in the mid 200s. Breaking into the top 100 and qualifying for the main event of a major in singles must still be in your thoughts…
Yes, definitely, being in the top 100 in Singles and Doubles is the goal and I believe I can do it. I have done it once in doubles. It is just a matter of time and I feel my doubles has always helped singles and improved my game generally. But I’m taking it one step at a time at the moment. First, I want to break back into the top 200 and that will get me back in the qualifying of the slams. That will also give me the opportunity to get the breakthrough in the main draw of slams.
The end is a little abrupt . Otherwise totally loved it .