Yuki Bhambri Birthday Special: From Junior Australian Open Win to Youth Olympics Silver, A Look at Achievements of Indian Tennis Ace

Yuki Bhambri, a former India World No 1 and a junior Grand Slam winner, celebrates his 28th birthday on July 4, 2020 (Saturday). Bhambri is the fourth Indian tennis player to win a junior Grand Slam title and the first to lift the Australian Open Junior Championship. Bhambri was also top-ranked boys junior tennis player and was touted to bring success to Indian tennis with tournament wins in professional tennis. But injuries, at a time when he was at his peak, has somewhat derailed his career. Bhambri has been out of action since 2018 and hopes to make a comeback at the French Open later this year. French Open 2020 to Allow Up to 60% Spectators Inside Stadium Amid Coronavirus Pandemic.

Born into a family of tennis players, Bhambri made his senior professional tennis debut at the 2009 Chennai Open. He lost compatriot Sanam Singh in the qualifying round. But his success in the junior level– apart from a junior Grand Slam win, he also is the first Indian to win Orange bowl Championships – continued. Bhambri won a silver medal at the 2010 Youth Olympics in Singapore. As Yuki Bhambri celebrates his 28th birthday, take a look at some of his achievements.

Junior Australian Open Title

Yuki Bhambri became the first Indian to win the junior Australian Open title in 2009 and only fourth from the country to lift a junior Grand Slam tournament after Ramanathan Krishnan (Wimbledon 1954), Ramesh Krishnan (Wimbledon and French Open 1979) and Leander Paes (Wimbledon 1990 and US Open 1991). Bhambri, top-seed in the tournament, beat Germany’s Alexandros-Ferdinandos Georgoudas 6-3, 6-1.

Orange Bowl Win

Bhambri, 16, became the first Indian tennis player to win the 2008 Dunlop Orange Bowl Championship after beating Jarmere Jenkins 6-1, 6-3 in straight sets. The win also handed him a wild card entry into the qualifying round of Sony Ericsson tournament.

Youth Olympics Silver Medal

Yuki created history when he clinched a silver medal at the 2010 Youth Olympics. The sixth-seeded 18-year-old had stunned the second-seed Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 in the last four. But he had to settle for a silver medal after being forced to retire hurt with cramps when trailing 1-4 against Juan Sebastian Gomez. The match ended 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 1-4 with the Colombian clinching the gold.

Breaking Into Top 100 ATP Rankings

Bhambri broke into the top 100 ATP rankings in 2015 after winning the Pune Open, his first title in India. 2015 was Bhambri’s most successful in professional tennis career with the Indian ace achieving his career-best ranking of 88 after the Pune Open win. He had started the year at 325 and ended it ranked 93rd with Shanghai Challenger and Pune Open tournament wins.

Grand Slam Participation

Yuki Bhambri achieved the record of playing in the main draw of all four Grand Slams (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open) in 2018. He plays in all four tennis championships in 2018 but was unfortunately knocked out in the opening round of all four majors.

Beating World No 12 Lucas Pouille at BNP Paribas Open

Bhambri, then India’s top-ranked singles player, stunned French world no 12 Lucas Pouille in a second-round clash of BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in 2018. Bhambri playing as a qualifier beat the Frenchman 6-4, 6-4 in an hour-long match to record his biggest win in terms of beating higher-ranked player in ATP circuit.

Bhambri is currently on a comeback trail and has not played since 2018 when he broke into the top 100 achieved his career-best rankings of 88 and played in all four Grand Slam tournaments. He has been off the court for the last 18 months after undergoing a knee injury and has also lost his ATP ranking.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 04, 2020 08:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).