I have been hooked to tennis since I was a child. I completed my schooling from Delhi Public School earlier this year and am planning to continue with my studies. I was introduced to tennis at a very young age and started playing at five. My parents used to take my sisters — tennis players Ankita and Sanaa Bhambri — to Siri Fort Sports Complex in south Delhi and I’d tag along. It all began with practising the shots with my sisters and their coaches.

The first turning point for me was playing my first tournament in South Africa where I represented India in the Under-12 category. I was only 10 then and this was a huge achievement for me.

Another turning point came when at 14 I was picked by the International Management Group that helps sportspersons with training and getting sponsors. So I started training at the reputed IMG Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida, USA.

Winning the Australian Open in the juniors category in 2009 was a big personal achievement as I also finished as World No.1 in the boys’ category. It made me realise that winning such a prestigious tournament was something very few Indians had done before and encouraged me to win the grand slam as I’d made it to the semi- finals of the same tournament the year before.

The most difficult part about tennis is making the transition from the junior category to the senior. Very few Indians like Leander Paes and Ramesh Krishnan have managed to hold their own in the men’s category. When you enter the seniors’ category, the competitors are physically and mentally stronger and you need to last in court for at least three to four hours, a lot longer than you are used to in the boys’ events. Competition is so huge that you have to perform your best each day.

Currently, I’ve been out of the game due to knee injuries because of which I have lost two months. I’m 19 now and ranked about 415 in the world. The aim is to finish the year by being in the top 250.

(As told to Varuni Khosla)