Kanishk Tennis Comeback

TISB Grade 8 student and tennis player, Kanishk, started his Universal Tennis Ranking (UTR) in 2020, as part of his journey towards a tennis scholarship. To reach his aim, Kanishk plays tennis almost every day and gets up early to exercise in his community. In January Kanishk had a shoulder and back injury which resulted in physiotherapy and easy tennis games to aid recovery. Recently he took part in the MAT open tennis tournament in Bangalore, where he won several prizes in different categories. We reached out to Kanishk to hear about his return from the injury and hopes for the future.

It was an awesome feeling to come back after an injury and get back on the field – Kanishk, Grade 8

After his injury, during January to February, Kanishk underwent daily physiotherapy, and his tennis playing was reduced significantly. He continued playing football and running in his community for lower body fitness.

Slowly but surely Kanishk recovered and was able to take part in the MAT tennis tournament in Bangalore, where he won the Under 14 Boys Singles, won Under 16 Doubles and came second in the Under 16 Boys Singles. “To get back to the court and play after the lay-back was a great preparation for me for the upcoming UTRs”, says Kanishk who has been playing tennis since he was 4 years old. “I was runner up and took it easy as I was getting tired, and I didn’t put in my best as I had UTR matches coming up in March”, says Kanishk who did not want to risk any further injuries or complications.

Kanishk started by playing tennis for pleasure until he reached the finals of the All-India Tennis Tournament (AITA) at the age of 9 when he decided to take the game more seriously. It has since been his passion, getting up at 5.30am on Tuesdays and Thursdays to practise against older kids. He regularly practices at ZATA (Zeeshan Ali Tennis Academy), where Zeeshan Ali – the non-playing captain of the Indian Davis Cup and tennis team – has taken a great interest in him and his skills, training him for further successes.

Since March, despite the pandemic, Kanishk has played and won two back-to-back UTR tournaments at CES Bangalore. He went on to play his international UTR matches and won all his rounds against older players, giving a boost to increase his UTR international ranking. In the future, Kanishk hopes to build his UTR rating, and work towards a tennis scholarship and ATP tournaments. “Tennis is my passion! I am lucky to have the support of my teachers and my parents”, says Kanishk who is happy to be back on the court and doing well again after his injury.