Yuki Bhambri’s push to stay injury-free sees him close in on top 100

Bengaluru, November 20: There's a lot of talk going around Yuki Bhambri - finally and again - in the Indian tennis circuit. The recent win at the KPIT MSLTA ATP Challenger in Pune is not the only reason. Sure, it was Bhambri's first title of the year, coming towards the end of the season almost. But the fact that he has won a title this late in the year and is also starting as the favourite for the Bengaluru Open ATP Challenger this week is what makes the talk interesting.

From outside the Top 500 a year ago, to lifting his 6th #ATPChallenger 🏆and closing in on a Top 100 return. The comeback continues for @yukibhambri, champion in Pune. pic.twitter.com/qAqXivsE3v

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) November 18, 2017

After reaching a career high World No 88 in 2015, it's only now that the 25-year-old Bhambri has played a full season, well almost. Frequent injuries has always seen Bhambri miss out on important tournaments. He missed out most of 2016 recovering from a tennis elbow injury. But now, all that is a thing of the past. With a new fitness regime and a physio in Abhimanyu Singh, Bhambri seems to have found the right balance.

"I have been trying to find way to stay healthy and push myself at the same time. I think over the years, since I am doing it consistently, the fitness regime has worked out," Bhambri told reporters after a practice session here on Monday (November 20).

"I have always felt that I have got the balance. Many times in the past I have thought this is the right balance. Of course, you need to chop and change and you need to be aware you are doing. Some days you want to push your tennis a bit more, some day you want to push your body, It's just finding the balance, It's all about going day by day and seeing how it is."

Since Abhimanyu has begun training Bhambri, the results have been improving. The Delhi-born player takes about half an hour to warm up for a match. More importantly, Abhimanyu ensures Bhambri doesn't forget his post-match routine. Some footwork, stretching, rehab and shoulder relaxation for 30 minutes completes Bhambri's routine, something the player admits has helped him stay injury-free.

It's also this change in his backroom staff that saw him stun the then World No 22 Gael Monfils in the CITI Open in Washington, an ATP 500 event. He also defeated Guido Pella in the pre-quarters before losing to South African World No 14 Kevin Anderson in the quarters. The second-round victory against Monfils is the biggest win in Bhambri's career so far but he says the experience of playing against the two has given him a lot of confidence.

"For me it was important to not be satisfied after the win against Monfils," he said. "I wanted to go deeper and I wanted to keep doing well. It (beating a big player and then lose the next match) does happen though. It was one of the biggest wins of my career. It was very easy for me to be happy with that, but I wasn't. I had a great chance with Anderson (Kevin), but I lost the third set. So from there, from third to quarterfinals, I wanted to see how far I could go."

On the difference between his approach for the two matches, Bhambri said: "It's longer rallies and hitting a lot of balls against Monfils. Against Anderson, it was first-strike tennis. He would rely on his serve. I had to be ready to play quick points, but high intensity points - the point would be over in four or five shots. Both different players and both bring different things to the table."

Right now, Bhambri is at World No 122 and the 100 points here, if he manages to win the final that is, will see him break into the top 100 again. If he does that, he will also be able to make the main draw of the Australian Open in January. He faces N Sriram Balaji in the first round on Tuesday (November 21).

"Usually the thing is.. we play about 11 months of the year," Bhambri said. "On an average, I think I'd like to play two to three weeks at a time and then take a break. It obviously depends on how you are going to do. Because if you are going to have a few first round losses, you have to re-schedule and re-strategise. But fortunately, I have been consistent. Most of the tournaments I have gone deep... into the quarters or semis... which has been ideal."

However, he added that the Australian Open Grand Slam is not on his mind right now. "Not at all," he said. "Every match is difficult. 25 weeks it took me too... 20 tournaments I have played and won one of them.. one Challenger for the year. So it's very very difficult. You can't look past the first round. It's a tough event... a big $100,000 Challenger and I have to be focussed on every match."