Karan Singh on Sunday became just the 51st man to win a Davis Cup singles rubber for India, a nation with a Davis Cup history spanning over a century since its debut in 1921.
The 21-year-old from Karnal, Haryana, marked his debut in the competition — often called the ‘World Cup of Tennis’ — with a commanding 6-2, 6-3 victory over unranked Togolese opponent Hod’abalo Isak Padio. Playing in front of around 2,000 spectators at the DLTA Complex, Karan helped India seal a 4-0 win in the World Group I Playoff. While the Davis Cup atmosphere tested the youngster’s nerves, the coming four weeks will provide a clearer measure of his skill level as he faces much stronger competition in consecutive ATP Challenger Tour events in Chennai, Delhi, Pune, and Bengaluru.
Encouraged by his father to take up tennis at the age of 11, Karan’s playing style has evolved under multiple coaches.
Currently training under Aditya Sachdeva at the RoundGlass Academy in Chandigarh, the 6’2” Karan has continued to develop his game without compromising his natural power.
“We have been working on him coming to the net more. He hurts you from the baseline, and we are just trying to teach him to close it down rather than staying on the baseline and grinding. Because with the kind of power he generates, you’re bound to get a weaker ball, and if you stay back, it is of no use,” Sachdeva told Sportstar.
Karan was also part of the National Tennis Centre (NTC) programme, designed to provide India’s top junior and senior players with professional training while alleviating financial hurdles. The initiative, headed by former Indian Davis Cup coach Zeeshan Ali, was based at the very venue where Karan made his Davis Cup debut.
However, following directives from the All India Tennis Association, the NTC ceased operations on December 31 last year.
“In 2019, I moved to NTC and was here with Zeeshan sir for two years. I was number two in the country in the Under-18 rankings, so they picked me from there and helped me a lot in my journey. I had a really good time with Zeeshan and Arun (Kumar) sir. It was great exposure because there were many good players to practise with, and it’s a bit unfortunate for the country that we don’t have a national tennis centre anymore,” said Karan, a former junior national champion and runner-up at the Senior Nationals.
He also had a brief stint with Vivek Shokeen, another Davis Cupper.
Since 2021, Karan has primarily competed on the ITF circuit, the lowest tier of professional men’s tennis, reaching two singles finals. However, this year, he aims to take the next step.
“After the four Challengers in India, I will see where my ranking is and whether I can get into more tournaments at the same level or ATP Tour events, but I am definitely not looking forward to playing more ITFs because I want to move from that circuit,” said Karan, currently ranked World No. 496.
Sachdeva hopes to guide Karan to a level where he can compete in Grand Slam qualifying rounds in 2025. With a maximum of 400 ATP ranking points available across the four upcoming Challengers at home, the Haryana lad has a significant opportunity to make a strong push towards that goal.
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