KOLKATA: As a player looking to make it to the top of professional tennis, Aravane Rezai was torn between the country of adoption and the country of her origin.

Iran, the country of her origin, does not have any scope for the sport, while her adopted country, France, was not giving her the requisite recognition.

Rezai has taken the fight boldly, vowing to move alone.

From 196 in the WTA rankings at the end of the last season, Rezai moved up to 66 last week. This is phenomenal progress considering she became a professional just a year ago.

And here at the Sunfeast Open, she was already a force to reckon with having moved into the quarterfinals. Rezai flew on her own to participate in the French Open and the U.S. Open and she reached the third and fourth rounds respectively.

"The French Federation doesn't like me continuing with my father as coach. They want a person of their choice which I don't like,'' Rezai says.

Trouble

The trouble with the parent federation meant Rezai lost the prospect of having a sponsor. "The sponsors come on the recommendation of the federation. I have no one backing me up financially as I am not falling in line with the federation,'' she says.

Rezai says she will get a sponsor if she keeps performing consistently.

"I do not have a physical trainer and that tells on my movement on the court. I am a fast learner and have picked up the techniques well from my father. But I need a good trainer for my physical tune-up,'' she said.

Rezai has travelled twice to Tehran to participate in the women's Islamic Games. "Whenever I visit Iran I find lot of young girls coming to see me train, and that is quite encouraging,'' Rezai added.

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