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Former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic has said India can't forever sit on the laurels of greats like Leander Paes and it must have a top-10 singles
player for tennis to thrive in the country.
"This is a big country, so having players in the top 100 and 200 is not good enough. You need a big player, a top 10 player, who is going to make the game popular and by seeing him/her, more kids take up the game," Ivanisevic, who is in India for the Road to Wimbledon programme, told PTI.
Ivanisevic, best known for his straight talk and a booming serve, feels the Indian players are not pushing hard enough despite having the skill. However, he is surprised to find that girls are more talented than boys.
"From what I have seen, I have to say that I like the girls more than guys. I don't mean guys are bad but the girls are more talented. Probably, this is a wake up call for the guys to push more, work harder," said the fit looking 43-year-old with a smile.
"Cricket is number one here because everyone plays cricket. So you need somebody like a Leander Paes or Mahesh (Bhupathi). They were big stars but now you need someone else to promote the game. It is a long way to go (for Indian tennis) but it is never too late. We are a small country (Croatia), still we produce good tennis players. You guys have facilities, players and coaches. You just need to put it all together."
Though Sania Mirza could become world number one in doubles soon, there is no top 100 singles player from India in singles category. Somdev Devvarman is the highest-ranked male at 171 and Ankita Raina the top female at 252. Asked where the Indian players lack in comparison to the Europeans, Ivanisevic put the difference down to just hard work.
"I think the kids need to push harder. The coaches have to be harder on them. You cannot coach kids who are 12 or 13 years old and let them be the boss. You have to make them work. The talent and skill is there but physically kids in Europe are much better.
"Besides there is so much to learn. How to play the points, your mental strength. It is not just about hitting the ball over the net. In addition to that, there is a need to educate the coaches. I hope they were listening to me when I was talking yesterday," said the 2001 Wimbledon winner.
Ivanisevic was 'loved' for his racquet breaking behaviour on court besides his other eccentricities, but he has been forced to mellow down ever since he took to coaching. One can gauge in his voice he proud he feels about guiding Marin Cilic to the 2014 US Open title. Not the maverick he was in his hey days, a Ivanisevic the coach has a message for the younger crop.
"I was a player who took risks. You have to take risk. You have to push your luck to see what is going to happen. I like to see people like that. In Marin's case, he had to take risks to win a Grand Slam. He had to go for his shots, I like guys like that," he said.
Image: Wimbledon legends Tim Henman (left) of United Kingdom and Goran Ivanisevic (right) of Croatia at the promotion of The Road to Wimbledon tournament for young tennis players in New Delhi.
Photo: PTI