It is always inspiring to meet young athletes with a strong will to succeed despite all adversities. I, Karthik Akella (IIK Young Reporter) had the privilege to chat with 11 year old Satyansh Mani Tripathi, an upcoming Indian tennis player in Kuwait. Satyansh is highly intent on succeeding in his sport of choice, although tennis is not widely recognized in this country.
He is already listed in the All India Tennis Association (AITA), Under-12 Boys Rankings and has reached rank# 468 as of 4th April 2016.
(This is the web link to access AITA Rankings for various categories).
http://www.aitatennis.com/raking.php
In Academics too Satyansh is a brilliant student. He has received Scholar Green Tie (scholar badge for three consecutive years) and reached the finals of Marrs Spelling Bee.
Satyansh family consists of his Father:-Anurag Tripathi, Mother:- Ananya Tripathi and younger brother:- Divyansh Tripathi.
I spoke to this young athlete about tennis, the local sports scene and his future plans.
Karthik (YR):Can you tell me a little about yourself?
Satyansh:Hi, I am Satyansh. I study in class 7, DPS. I love playing tennis and to write. My role model is Novak Djokovic. I am thankful to my School and the Principal for their continuous support. I have been representing DPS for the past 3 years.
Karthik (YR):At which age did you start playing tennis?
Satyansh:I started playing tennis is Class II.
Karthik (YR):What is so fun in tennis that your playing it from Class II?
Satyansh::Whenever I play tennis, I get a feeling that one day I will become very famous and sign autographs and that’s why I would continue to play tennis.
Karthik (YR):Did you have any difficulty in the beginning during your early days of learning how to play tennis?
Satyansh:When I was learning tennis, I had difficulty in serving and due to this in my 1st time of participation in the Championship when I played with Kuwait no.2, I lost 9-1. But as I grew up, I practiced and developed my serving skills.
Karthik (YR):How do you balance time between studies and sports?
Satyansh:As I go to play tennis every day, I try to finish all my works in the school itself and after I come home I eat, study for some time and sleep. Sleep because I need to relax for playing tennis till night.
Karthik (YR):You have played the Kuwait Open Lawn Tennis Championship 4 times. The 1st time, you might have felt very nervous and then there were the 2nd, 3rd and 4th attempts. How would you differentiate between the 1st one and the successful latest outing?
Satyansh:The 1st time, I was not perfectly trained. Here, the audience did not support me as I was the only expat. In fact, they discouraged me. But in the 4th attempt, when I was winning, my opponent was losing his temper and that’s how I beat Kuwait no.1 in the finals.
Karthik (YR):Could you further describe your match with Mohsen Jamal?
Satyansh:Mohsen is very fast, agile and swift. He could take all my fast shots. He would not break the rally and he likes to continue the rally. It was actually fun playing with him. I like playing with hard opponents. Every time, Kuwaiti nationals were only winning this tournament, but when I won, people were shocked and surprised.
Karthik (YR):What keeps you going when hard times arrive in a match?
Satyansh:This line known as “Never Give Up” and I would not let myself lose hope. Once, when I was losing 5-0, I didn’t lose my temper and hope and won with a tie-breaker. I even keep in mind what my parents told me before the match.
Karthik (YR):What is your training regime and how do you keep yourself fit?
Satyansh:To be frank, I don’t exercise regularly because I am lazy. I just go to the court and start playing. That’s it. I play 5 times in a week on the court. And in weekends, I play with Khalid Sir.
Karthik (YR):What do your future plans include?
Satyansh:My future plans include beating Pete Sampras’s Grand Slam record.
Karthik (YR):Do you have any advice for the young aspiring tennis players?
Satyansh: Yes. You might face difficulties but “Never Give Up”. Until you fight, the game is yours. I have inspired many of my building friends to play tennis who have now reached the Nationals!!!
From IIK, we wish Satyansh lots of success in all his future endeavors.
Disclaimer: Statements and opinions expressed in the article are those of the authors and written by them; the author is solely responsible for the content in this article. IndiansinKuwait.com does not hold any responsibility for them.