Pune: The Indian tennis players are a jittery lot these days as the number of tournaments – both Challengers and Futures has fallen to alarming levels, making their life tougher on an already demanding circuit.
In the 2015 season, India had hosted 19 men s ITF Futures and 16 women s ITF events but this year the men have got only six tournaments so far while the ongoing USD 10,000 event in Pune is only the third tournament of the season for women.
India hosted four ATP Challengers in 2015, but this season only two have been held Delhi Open and Pune Challenger in eight months.
It has severely impacted the progress of players who are outside top-200 in singles. Almost every player competing on the circuit is deeply concerned since in the absence of home events, they are forced to travel outside India for competitions, burning a big hole in their pocket.
“It played a major role financially. Without any sponsor and coming from a middle class family it was difficult for me.
Playing leagues in Germany in the summer helped me a bit as I used it (the money) for travelling,” says N Sriram Balaji.
