Wimbledon is the world's most prestigious tennis tournament with a long history dating back to 1887. Yet through all these years, no Indian (or Asian) has ever won the singles title!!
The best Indian performance so far at Wimbledon is by Ramanathan Krishnan. He reached the semifinals 2 consecutive times in the 1960s, losing out to eventual winners on both occasions. His son Ramesh Krishnan reached Wimbledon quarterfinals in 1986. Vijay Amritraj also reached quarterfinals 2 times in the 70s. After that, there is nothing much to say about Indian players in Wimbledon singles. Of course, in doubles we have had some good performances over the years by Anand/Vijay Amritraj and later on by LeanderPaes and Mahesh Bhupathi. But singles is a different matter altogether.
I have always thought why a nation of 2 billion people is not able to produce a single tennis champion? It cannot be the money factor. Even poorer countries like Serbia are producing very good players like Ana Ivanovic. Anyway there are lots of Indians who can afford tennis training now.
Just wondering, wouldn't it be great if India can produce players who can actually dominate world tennis? Our latest tennis hope is Sania Mirza. But she seems to be mostly inconsistent, often going out in the 2nd or 3rd rounds of big tournaments.
What are your views ? When do you think an Indian will win Wimbledon singles title?
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