Maharashtra tennis player Sandesh Kurale who has junior National title and National Games team championship gold medal on his resume, has come a long way from humble beginnings in Channekuppi village.
Dattatraya Kurale ran a mess for college students in Gadhinglaj, near Kolhapur. He liked tennis. It was a different sport than the ones Indians usually played. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to initiate his athletic ten-year-old son, Sandesh, into it, he thought. (More Sports News)
Sandesh enjoyed tennis too. At the age of eight, he watched a children’s tournament in Kolhapur. He used to run and play different sports at the time, but he particularly liked tennis.
“It was more fun than running. Also, matches were longer and it was an individual game. I enjoyed it,” Sandesh said in an interview.
The adversity the Kurales faced was more of the logistical kind. While they had food on the table, the family lived in Channekuppi village in Gadhinglaj, where access to a tennis court was near impossible.
Over a few weeks, Dattaraya Kurale put all his knowledge and savings into turning their patch of land, and relaying it with modifications, to make a tennis court of sorts for his son. It was half a court, actually, drawn against a wall.
Nine years later, Sandesh stood at the National Games tennis venue on the Sabarmati Riverfront, with a junior National title and National Games team championship gold medal on his resume. The tot who ran around Channekuppi is now six foot plus, and has to crouch under courtside trees to not walk into a branch.
“I played everything when I was small. Papa liked tennis and I liked it too. On the court that my father made, he would give me some drills and I would also practice serves,” Sandesh told Outlook.
Gadhinglaj and its improvised court were alright to learn the rudiments of the sport. But there came a point when Sandesh had to play in proper tennis facilities. He started training in Kolhapur, first under coach Uttam Farakte, and then coaches Arshad and Manal Desai.
For a time, Sandesh would travel 150 km a day by bus from Channekuppi to Kolhapur and back for practice. Well-wishers then arranged a place for him to stay in Kolhapur.
Almost throughout, Sandesh’s results were encouraging. In April 2021 came the big one. He became the under-18 National champion. It was time to move again. Sandesh went to Pune to train under coach Hemant Bendre.
Sandesh’s philosophy to deal with difficulty is simple, although not easy to practice.
“Mi haar kadhich maanat nahi (I never accept defeat),” he said. “Nor do I ever underestimate myself. Before I won the Nationals, things had gotten difficult in terms of money. The various expenses – training, travelling to tournaments, nutrition – were becoming difficult to bear, After I won the Nationals, I got sponsor support.”
A fan of Novak Djokovic, Sandesh is now targeting the Asian level, and would like to play Davis Cup and the Olympics for India. It is a tall ask, but he has shown he can achieve big goals.