Want your kid to be tennis star? Spend Rs50 lakh per year

You'd probably know that whoever wins the US Open will take home a cool $3 million (Rs 18,00,00,000). You'd also probably know that Sania Mirza and Bruno Soares will split $150,000 (Rs 90,00,000) in prize money that they earned by winning the US Open mixed doubles title on Friday. But did you know that an average professional tennis player in India spends about Rs 50,00,000 per year?

Yes, besides talent, skill, incredible levels of physical and mental strength, tennis also requires another important – if not the most important – ingredient: a healthy savings account.
Roger Federer might be earning a cool $55 million every year, but chances are that even a more-than-decent tennis player in India would never be able to recover his/her money unless player reaches a certain level at the top. And the numbers (read losses) can be staggering.

Parents, take notice.
An average tennis player in India playing at the professional level is likely to spend around Rs 30,00,000 per annum, playing – again, on an average – 30 tournaments throughout the year across eight to 10 different countries.

Now, if you thought the cost is a surprise, the returns will be shocking. The player is likely to earn only half that amount or a little bit more, and that too only if his individual ranking is inside the top-150 and also manages to win at least a couple out of those 30 events. In short, a tennis player in India is likely to lose money every year unless he makes it to the top-150 in the rankings in four or five years.

Take the case of Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan. The Chennai lad started to play the sport at the age of four. As his junior tennis career took shape, he went on to study at the University of Washington in the United States from 2007 and graduated from there in 2011. Now 25 and training in Germany, Jeevan is into his third year on the professional circuit, with a singles ranking of 293. In all these years of his tennis career, Jeevan has not even once made more money than he has spent.

Besides the Rs 30,00,000 playing on the circuit, Jeevan has to spend another Rs 20,00,000-Rs 25,00,000 every year on his training in Germany, which is the average cost of training in a good tennis academy in Europe. Thus, if you do the math, the average cost of a professional tennis player would be around Rs 50,00,000 per year.

"Unless you are a Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic or Andy Murray, if you want to be a workman on the circuit, it takes about four to five years till you can be realistic of getting into the top-150," says Jeevan.

"It's hard to say that you've made it in tennis unless you get there in that amount of time. Only then are you making money. And still, it's just meeting your expenses and probably making a $100,000 (Rs 60,00,000) per year if you are inside the top-150 for a good amount of time."

After his junior career, a player enters a host of tournaments as a professional. First up is the Futures level, where the prize money on offer ranges from $10,000 to $15,000 (Rs 6,00,000- Rs 9,00,000). The next step is the Challengers level, where most of the middle-ranked players like Jeevan – probably between 100 and 400 — spend their time playing.

The problem for the Indian players arises here. Due to the lack of challenger events in the country – India only hosts five – they have no option but to travel to various countries to play in the hope of increasing their rankings.

The costs, thus, escalate.

"It's not just about the travel," says Jeevan. "You have to pay for your own stay, food and hospitality. If you are a real professional, you need a coach to travel with you and sometimes even a trainer. You add their costs.
"And even if you win a $50,000 challenger event, you'll only make around $6,000 (Rs 3,60,000). It's not an easy win and it's not going to change your life either."

But even if it does, and and player continues to consistently move up the rankings to have a shot at the ATP Tour events (ATP World Tour 250, ATP World Tour 500 and ATP World Tour Masters 1000) and the Grand Slam qualifiers, which is the pinnacle of professional tennis, the costs are only bound to go skyward. Yes, as earnings expand, so does the spendings.

One player who has experienced what it takes to play at that level is India's legend, Leander Paes. The 14-time major winner, who at 40 became the oldest man to win a Grand Slam with the 2013 US Open doubles title, also had his share of financial dilemma as a youngster on the tour.

Recalls his father, Vece Paes: "There were times when I used to wake up at night sweating, wondering where so much money would come from.

"As Leander started progressing, we had to fund for his coaches, which used to cost about $6,000-7,000 (Rs 3,60,000- Rs 4,20,000) per week, besides paying for his accommodation and food."

It came to a stage where Vece had to borrow about Rs 5,00,000 every year from six of his colleagues for five years so that Leander could pursue the sport. They also had to convince a foreign coach to take the youngster under his wings on credit for a year.

However, once Leander got into the Indian Davis Cup squad in 1990 at 16, Vece knew his son was in better position.

"Sponsors then start coming forward once you become a regular part of the Davis Cup team. Endorsements come in, and then your financial aspect gets better," says Vece.

Of course, that happens only to a few exceptionally talented players like Leander.

Ask Jeevan at what time do the sponsors start to come in, pat comes the reply: "They don't, to put it very simply. I just get my apparel and shoes taken care of, without any money. There is also no help from either my state association or the All India Tennis Associations.

"It's funny because now people are getting to know that it takes four to five years after your junior career to make it big in tennis. The AITA helped me in my juniors, but I haven't got anything since. And that's when the real test of your tennis career starts," says Jeevan.

SCENE IN JUNIORS
But even before that 'real test', there are challenges as a kid. And, of course, there are expenses too.
Firstly, to find a good court to train in India is a challenge in itself. Ask Bruno Goveas, whose 16-year-old son Aryan from Mumbai is one of the best junior tennis players around in the country. Aryan now trains at the Solaris Club in Pune after playing in Mumbai's Khar Gymkhana. No wonder, then, that most of the professional players migrate overseas to train.
And even if a parent plans to enrol the child into one of the academies to train, it comes at a price.
The Mahesh Bhupathi Tennis Academy, which has its centres spread across the country, charges about Rs 2,000 per month at the beginners level, depending upon the city. The charges increase with your level — from basic to intermediate to advance. They even have private coaching sessions if the child is serious about his tennis, which can cost Rs 1,500-Rs 1,800 per hour.
That done, once the kid starts his junior career, the money-spending juggernaut begins. The kid has to travel to various countries to play an average of 10 events in the International Tennis Federation circuit, which can cost up to Rs 1,50,000 per week.
Even if the kid goes on to become the best among the juniors, there's no guarantee that it will translate into the senior professional career.
Take for instance, Yuki Bhambri, who was the junior World No. 1 in 2009. His current singles ranking is 151, and alongwith the likes of Jeevan, is struggling to make money.
"Yuki is an example of how long it can take to make it big even if you have the game," says Jeevan. "There can be many road-bumps as far as money and sponsors are concerned despite having a stellar junior career."

GIRL POWER?
For girls, the road-bumps might just be steeper, for it is taking ages for India to produce another Sania.
The costs of playing tennis remain the same for girls, but is it tougher for them to make it big in the sport, besides attracting sponsors?
Rising tennis player from Mumbai Kyra Shroff, 21, says Sania is showing the way forward for girls in tennis, but there needs to be a more structured approach if they are to excel in the sport.
"Yes, Sania's influence is big on all of us, but there needs to be a better structured programme for girls in tennis. And of course, the financial aspect is always a concern," she says.
PC Ponnappa, a former four-time national champion who quit the sport at 20 because "she could not keep relying on her parents", feels things are much better now than during her time, but the financial part can still be difficult for girls.
"For girls, it can get a bit harder to attract sponsors because the prejudice against women still exists, although not as much as before. And such phenomenal expenses also hold back parents. Plus, the society is still vary about girls taking sport as a career. They still think it's a huge gamble," adds Ponnappa, who is married to former national tennis champion Gaurav Natekar.

THE CHOICE IS YOURS
Thus, after all the number crunching, here's the million-dollar question for all parents and their aspiring tennis kids: Is tennis a financially feasible sport in this day and age, even if your child has the talent?
"In any single sport, you have to be ready to invest," Vece says. "But I wouldn't recommend tennis unless your child is exceptionally talented and physically fit. Other than the money aspect which can be a big concern, we Indians tend to fall short in the physical aspect of singles tennis."
Natekar, former Davis Cup player and Asian Games gold medallist who has now turned coach, says that with the right amount of advising to parents, kids can still dream of making it big.
"Times have changed. Unlike 20 years ago, even if you make it to a decent level in tennis as a kid, you can get a scholarship and go to the USA. After a few years of playing in the circuit, you can decide whether to want to continue pursuing tennis or take up a job with the degree," says Natekar.
But Jeevan, who has been there, done that, and is still trying to find his feet at the top-level, says it's not practical to get into tennis unless you have the pure passion.
"It's an extremely tough life to pursue, especially as far as making it financially is concerned," he says. "I would not recommend it if people want it for fame or money. Tennis is not structured to reap the financial benefits of your hard work like some other sports are designed."
That's when the talk of Federer's whopping earnings comes up.
"That's the thing," Jeevan shoots back. "It looks so glamorous at the top. But the breakdown in tennis is probably one of the most devastating breakdowns in any sport."