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A hero reminiscences

Photo: S.R. Raghunathan

Wimbledon memories Tennis legend Ramanathan Krishnan

“You must see this,” says Ramanathan Krishnan, hurrying across his tastefully done-up house, side-stepping a giant dog and rounding a wooden swing. He points to the patio, the site of a nascent grasscourt. “It was my wife’s and Ramesh’s idea – a grass court in our backyard. It’s because of our love for Wimbledon. Between Ramesh and me, there has been a Krishnan at Wimbledon in every decade from the 50s to the 90s.” Ramanathan Krishnan, 71, had an international tennis career that can scarcely be believed. He competed on level terms with all-time greats such as Rod Laver, Roy Emerson, Ken Rosewall and Neale Fraser, stayed an amateur despite being offered $150,000 by Jack Kramer, and helped India reach the Davis Cup final. It was at Wimbledon, where he reached the semifinals in 1960 and 1961, that Krishnan scripted some of Indian tennis’s most memorable moments.

The conquest of Jaroslav Drobny, champion at Wimbledon in 1954 (the same year Krishnan won the boys’ title), was his first significant success on the famous lawns. It almost didn’t happen, for the19-year-old touch artist sprained his ankle ten days before the 1956 championship. Drawn to face the left-hander in opening Monday’s second match, Krishnan spent the lead up in movie houses, hoping he’d recover in time. “Still in plaster, I thought to myself that I must play on Centre Court, it was one of my ambitions,” he says. “The doctor said the injury had healed but I had to make up my own mind about playing. My mind though had already been made up. As the first match began on Monday, I was looking to hit with a left-hander to prepare for Drobny. I was allowed to practise on Court 17 because I was scheduled to play on Centre Court, and as luck would have it, Rod Laver walked up and said he knew what I was looking for. He hit with me and was later the second after Ken Rosewall to congratulate me in the locker room after the victory.”

Drobny was past his prime, but still a big name, and this was the match that made me. Back in those days, you lived a lot on memory, on past glory, and one big win against a big name on Centre Court would make you.”

The victory earned Krishnan an invitation to breakfast with Jawaharlal Nehru, then India’s Prime Minister, and a hero’s welcome at home. Krishnan’s finest match at Wimbledon saw him outplay Roy Emerson in the quarterfinals in 1961.

The score – 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 – is remarkable, as is Krishnan’s 8-8 head-to-head record against the holder of 12Grand Slams. “Emerson never liked playing me,” says Krishnan. “I noticed immediately that he seemed nervous against me, and I attacked him all the way. He was known for attacking his opponent, and on that day I attacked him.” Did he have a shot at the championship in 1960 and 1961? “When you are in the last four, you have a chance,” says Krishnan. “I had beaten them all. But I came up against two of the finest left-handers ever. (Neale) Fraser served superbly and Laver punished me on the return of serve.”

Both Fraser and Laver went on to win the title. In 1962, an ankle injury forced him to forfeit his third-round match – a cruel fate, for the draw had opened up with the defeats of Emerson and Chuck McKinley. Nevertheless, Krishnan’s memories of Wimbledon remain “very pleasant.” He remembers with warmth his first trip to the United Kingdom on the SS Orantes, the “picturesque” setting, the strawberries he could eat for a shilling in his day, and the companionship of the world’s best tennis players. Although he doesn’t follow the action from South West London as keenly as he once did, Krishnan says he tunes in for the big matches and contests that pique his interest. “I really like watching Wimbledon because grass courts have so much charm,” he says. “I especially like watching the important points because I have gone through the same emotions.”

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