Asian Games: Prajnesh Gunneswaran delighted to have chosen his country ahead of US open
Prajnesh Gunneswaran, who won a bronze medal in tennis in the ongoing Asian games, is a delighted man now to have decided to play for his country ahead of the US open. The Chennai man went down to Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin 2-6, 2-6 in the semi-final encounter of men’s singles yesterday.
One of the shining lights of Indian tennis circle, Gunneswaran has carved a niche for himself in the single's circuit and also managed to make sure that the country is on the right path to revive the glory days of the game. However, Prajnesh had to make a tough choice of either playing US Open or represent India in the 18th Asian games and he decided to play for his country. The decision also paid off immensely as he has become only the sixth Indian to win a men’s singles medal in Asian games history.
“I really thought of trying to make it to the main draw of the US Open this time. Wins in the US Open qualifiers would also help me to boost my rankings. But then there was the honour of representing your country and this opportunity comes once in four years, so I decided to play here. Maybe if I didn’t win a medal, I would have regretted the decision a little bit but now I know it was the right thing to do,” Prajnesh told The Times of India.
Speaking about his feeling after winning the medal in the games, an elated Prajnesh said, “I am seriously pinching myself right now. It’s surreal. I am at a loss for words. I have had a wonderful year and this was the icing on the cake.”
The Indian tennis player was certainly no match for Istomin when it comes to physical abilities, strength, and power. Prajnesh said that the hot and humid conditions in Jakarta did take a toll on him.
“I was not at my best physically today after cramping twice in my last two matches. I played a
Talking about some errors committed by him in the semi-final game, Prajnesh said that he made unnecessary errors and Istomin was almost perfect.
“This is not the time to make excuses but rather accept that I was outplayed. Of course, I came here to win the gold for my country but I am happy to have won at least a bronze,” the 161st ranked player said.
The year 2018 has been a fascinating one for Prajnesh. From being part of the winning side in the Davis Cup Asia Oceania tie against China to qualify for his first Grand Slam at Roland Garros, it’s been a great year for him. He also registered his highest singles ranking of 152 in 2018.
“This has been a great year for me and the fact that I had to miss out on the opportunity to play French Open still hurts. I was injured during Wimbledon but now I felt ready to try again,” said the Chennai-born tennis player.