The Hindu : Sport / Tennis : Talented Vinay in need of support

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Dec 31, 2004

Sport

Sport - Tennis

Talented Vinay in need of support

By V.V. Subrahmanyam

HYDERABAD, DEC. 30. For someone who is stepping into a different grade after being India No.1 tennis player in the under-14 category, Vinay Kamineni could not have asked for a better gift from the State government with the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, presenting him a cash incentive of Rs. 1 lakh on Thursday.

The 14-year-old from Vizag, scheduled to play in his maiden National under-16 championship in Gurgaon next week, has been facing financial problems as his parents are left to manage finances on their own.

They shell out Rs. 2500 to personal coach Viswanath Gopi at the NRI Tennis Academy from their own pocket due to paucity of quality coaches in Vizag, which highlights the youngster's plight.

Vinay is a talented youth, who recently bagged a double in the under-14 category in the Nutrine Masters championship in Bangalore and needs the support of the AP Lawn Tennis Association as well as the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh. It is not without reason that the VC & MD of SAAP, Sumita Dawra, assured Vinay that the Government would not be found wanting in its support. That he reached 17 finals in 20 AITA ranking tournaments this year is proof of his growing confidence in the circuit.

Eyeing improvement

Credited with an impressive forehand and a decent array of cross-court strokes, Vinay is determined to make an all-round improvement. "I don't want to say that I am strong in one aspect or weak in another. My endeavour has been to keep improving and that is the only way I can look ahead," said Vinay, a student of Sivasivani Public School.

His father, K. Koteshwar, who runs a small-time automobile service station, is aware of the financial implications he has to face to enable his son pursue the game. "I know the difficulty we will eventually face. But since my son has started producing results, I am in no mood to deter him from playing. After all, hard work does pay ultimately," he said.

For the moment, Koteshwar is pleased with SAAP's response and is confident that if his son continues to win everything will fall in place.

Early to predict

It might be too early to predict what is in store but Vinay possesses unmistakable talent and has intense desire to excel under trying circumstances. It will be without doubt a dream for the youngster, whose idol is Pete Sampras, to think of something big.

Vinay has made rapid progress after making a beginning in 1998 and is bound to do produce something special, given the necessary financial and monetary support.

His face was beaming when he posed for a photo session in the company of Sania Mirza at the Chief Minister's official chambers. He, however, realises that he still has a long way to go. But, to achieve his first objective of representing India in the international circuit at any grade, he needs support. Only time will tell the whether the young talent will drift away or timely support will produce another champion.

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