There are big hopes and expectations from India’s left-handed Tennis prodigy, Rushil Khosla. The 16-year-old most recently led India to victory in the Asia-Oceania Group of the Junior Davis Cup and is also a recipient of the Bal Puraskar award from the Indian President. Khosla is a former Asian junior number one and has won 21 of the 23 tournaments he participated in during 2019.
In this exclusive interview with Man’s Life, Rushil talks about his aspirations of reaching the Olympics, his hero Virat Kohli, and his thoughts on the GOAT debate in Tennis.
View this post on Instagram
Q: What are your dreams and aspirations as a Tennis athlete? Where would you like to reach in your career?
My immediate dream is to win Junior Davis Cup world group after winning the Asia-Oceania Group. Long term goal I would say would be to win the gold medal at the 2026 Asian games Gold followed by a 2028 Olympic Gold for the country. As I experienced during Junior Davis Cup there is no feeling greater than representing and winning for the country.
Q: Which is your preferred surface to play on and how are you adapting your game to the 3 different types.
I will say my preferred surface is hard court. When I started playing tennis I used to love playing on clay and recently I was training in Europe so I kind of liked the European clay courts. I have not experienced the grass courts much, hopefully next year Junior Wimbledon Championships I will get that opportunity.
The surface plays a very important role in your game plan & style, and this is what makes tennis such an interesting game for players as well as spectators. I would say I am still learning how to adapt my game to different surfaces, even the big 3 (Nadal, Federer, and Djokovic) have their preferred surfaces…
Q: Who is the GOAT in Tennis in your opinion?
They all are GOAT, its privilege for us to see them play together for so long. My personal GOAT is Nadal just for the fact never say die (attitude).
Q: Who is your sporting hero?
Virat Kohli for his level of commitment, hard work & winning attitude. There is so much to learn from him, and I wish I can meet him soon.
Q: What are your interests outside of sport? How do you relax?
I have many friends in the tennis circle. I love binge watching (TV shows). I occasionally play the guitar to destress myself.
Q: How do you balance growing up and having a ‘normal childhood’ with being a professional athlete?
It’s still a long way for me to go before I consider myself as a professional athlete. I have always been told to enjoy this journey. I always keep that spirit with me and I look to do fun activities at home and in other places when I can.
Q: Do you have any advice to young athletes looking to start a career in sports?
Keep things simple and continue to do the hard work, it’s all going to happen step by step.
[Featured Image Credit: RoundGlass Sports]
Shivaan Shah