Need more ITF tournaments in India, says Bengaluru Open tournament director Sunil Yajaman

In an exclusive interview with Khel Now, the Joint Secretary of KSLTA also spoke on the importance of the tournament for Indian players.

The 6th edition ATP 100 Bengaluru Open Challenger concluded in a grand fashion. Anirudh Chandrasekhar and Prasanth Sunder finished runner-up in the doubles section and have now risen to the career-best rankings. Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA) has been organizing the tournament consistently since 2015. Sumit Nagal and Prajnesh Gunneswaran made use of the tournament and were the champions (singles) in the earlier editions. Saketh Myneni won the event in the doubles section last year.

Khel Now got an opportunity to talk with Sunil Yajaman (tournament director of Bengaluru Open). He spoke on the new sponsorship deal with Dafanews, support from the government, the importance of the Bengaluru Open for Indian players and the necessity to increase the number of ITF tournaments in the country. Here are excerpts from the conversation.

Partnership with Dafanews

Ahead of the 2023 edition, DafaNews was roped in as the title sponsor for three years. Apart from DafaNews, there are several other sponsors who have been supporting the event to make it a grand success.

Sunil Yajaman said, “They are going to be the title sponsors for the next three years and we are fortunate to have a title sponsor. We now have the commitment for three years which means the tournament will take place at the highest level.”

Role as technical director

He added,” As a tournament director, I am responsible for organizing the tournament. The only thing which I don't look at seriously is the sponsorship for which we have a team and together we execute. Apart from that the entire technical conduct of the event is my responsibility. Hospitality, transport, and fan experience also fall under my control.”

Support from the government

The government of Karnataka has been actively helping KSLTA in organizing the Bengaluru Open since 2015. 30 to 40 per cent of funds are directly given by the govt.

On the importance of govt support Sunil Yajaman iterated, “Whenever we plan any tournament in Banglore or anywhere else in Karnataka we reach out to the government and explain to them the importance of hosting the event. Fortunately the govt. of Karnataka, irrespective of the political party in power, has always been progressive and supportive. Also, 30 to 40 per cent of the fund is given by the govt through the sports department or through other organizations.”

Tournament’s importance 

“Bangalore is termed the world’s most dynamic city and it's truly a global city. The tournament has been held for the past years and has given a good promotion to the brand Bengaluru. Not many events occur regularly on an annual basis as well,” he added.

Importance of the tournament to Indian players

In the past, there are several Indians who made good use of the tournament. Sumit Nagal won his first ATP Challenger here in 2017. 

The tournament director opined, “The tournament is very important and crucial for Indian players' development. Unfortunately, we do not have any players in the top 300 currently but with three tournaments scheduled (Chennai Open, Bengaluru Open, and Pune Open). In the end, I am sure there will be a few players who will raise their rankings. These three weeks will be of great importance.”

Other tournaments to look forward to

After the end of the Bengaluru Open, there are several ITF futures tournaments lined up for both men and women set to be hosted across Karnataka.

Sunil Yajaman listed out the tournaments to be hosted and said, “Apart from Banglore, there are many places where we have held tournaments from ATP Challengers to ITF Futures. We are aiming to host many futures this season (approximately eight weeks). Immediately after the Bengaluru Open, we have ITF 25 women’s followed by ITF 40 women’s and ITF 25 men’s. Karnataka will be busy hosting events for one month starting with Bengaluru Open.”

View on the current state of tennis in India

India needs to host several tournaments which have been lacking for the past few years. 2023 has started on a good note with India hosting the ATP 250 event along with three challengers. In the future, there is a need to host several tournaments.

“Nothing is enough is one thing. There are many ITF futures tournaments happening this year. AITA is taking initiative in organizing the tours. As I said it is not enough we need more ITF tournaments. A small country like Belgium is able to host 35 weeks of ITF tours and in a similar way, India also needs to host 20 weeks of ITF futures separately for men and women and another ten weeks for ATP Challenger events. There was a time when the USA did not have players in the top 100 for two to three years,” he added.