Chennai, Jan 1 (IANS) The ATP Chennai Open has rarely failed to throw up a surprise winner. There is little reason to believe it will be different as the 17th $450,000 men’s tennis challenge starts here Monday with its share of close matches.
Top seed and World No.9 Janko Tipsarevic from Serbia starta as the odds-on favourite. However, the last time a top seed won the crown was in 2006 when Croatian Ivan Ljubicic denied Spaniard Carlos Moya a third consecutive title.
Only twice before has a top seed lived up to the billing – Guillermo Canas of Argentina in 2002 and Patrick Rafter of Australia in 1998.
Even the iconic Spaniard Rafael Nadal twice failed in 2007 and 2008 when he was the top seed and on way to becoming World No.1. Czech Michal Tabara remains the only unseeded player to have won the title, in 2001.
Tipsarevic has the weight of history against him. The other serious challengers are Nicolas Almagro (World No.10), defending champion Stanislas Wawrinka (17) and 20-year-old Milos Raonic, a Canadian with Serbian immigrant parentage.
Of the lot, Raonic, winner of ATP’s Newcomer of the Year award for his meteoric rise from 156 to 25 in 2011 before dropping to current 31, would be watched with more than passing interest.
Raonic, who moved to Canada as a three-year-old, has since represented Canada in Davis Cup. Pundits predict an illustrious future for this six-foot, five-inch giant who might thrive on the hard courts of Chennai Open.
While Wawrinka and Tipsarevic have been familiar figures here, the player who has set the connoisseur’s pulse racing is Almagro whose fiery temperament and power-hitting have added an edge to his undoubted talent.
Winner of three titles out of five final appearances in 2011, Almagro broke into top 10 in May. Experts reckon that a bit more tempering of his character marked by on-court theatrics, he would go places.
From an Indian perspective, wild cards Yuki Bhambri and Vishnu Vardhan, both of whom are still to make a mark on the pro tour, and 2009 finalist Somdev Devvarman will generate some home interest.
But the three will have to raise their game to a level they have never before to make an impact.
The 26-year-old Devvarman attained a career-high ranking of 62 in July, but could not sustain the early momentum that had seen him reach a tour final in Johannesburg.
Since breaking into top-100 in August 2010, the Indian ace has struggled to take the next big step of getting inside top 50, a progression that is still awaited.
2010 was one of his best years as he won the gold at the Commonwealth Games followed by a double at the Asian Games. These achievements counted towards the Arjuna Award he got in September.
Devvarman’s long-time coach Brian Boland believes the best is yet to come from the Indian Davis Cupper who counts Chennai as his home, having spent his formative years in the bustling metropolis.
‘He is without question one of the fastest and best defensive players in the world. He is now hitting a much bigger ball with more depth and precision. Through a lot of hard work he has become one of the best players in the world. I believe the best is in front him,’ Boland was quoted as saying in a recent interview.
While not lacking in partisan support from the stands, his fans would be hoping that the Chennai Open will see a turnaround in Devvarman’s career, as it did to the pair of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi who began their run to the top of doubles standings with victory here in 1997.
The two, who have won the Chennai Open doubles title five times, will have different partners. Paes is to play with Tipsarevic and Bhupathi has decided to pair with Rohan Bopanna.
Given the pedigree and the doubles rankings, the two pairs are expected to clash in the title round Jan 8.
