Exclusive | Mahesh Bhupathi: 'When there's no system in your country, it's very hard to produce champions'

Mahesh Bhupathi, former India doubles tennis ace (AFP/File Photo)

The year 2024 witnessed turmoil in the Indian tennis ecosystem, marked by disputes between the federation and some high-profile Indian players. Such was the mess that Mahesh Bhupathi, former India doubles tennis ace, jumped in to expose the gaps within the All India Tennis Association (AITA), which appeared to be headed South. In an explosive social media post, which you can still find on the tennis icon's profile, Bhupathi called out Anil Dhupar, then AITA Secretary General, for "butchering Indian tennis players."

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Eight months into 2025, a lot has changed as Dhupar has been removed as the Secretary General by AITA's executive committee. The senior sports administrator, in response, has challenged his ouster at the Delhi High Court. In more development, Sumit Nagal, India’s top-ranked singles tennis player, and Yuki Bhambri, who were at the heart of the controversy due to their withdrawals from the Davis Cup, have returned to the Indian squad.

Bhupathi, in an exclusive interaction with Moneycontrol earlier this week, reflected his thoughts on the country's discouraging tennis ecosystem. The 12-time Grand Slam doubles winner acknowledged that the current scenario may not appear appealing, but refused to blame the players for it. He instead made a hard-hitting point.

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"There are gaps that are exactly why we don't see the results that we all as tennis fans want to see. Until those gaps are filled, which are not the players' fault, I don't think we'll see too many miracles. In the meantime, players who are out on tour, I know they're trying their best, and we can't demotivate anyone by telling them they are not good enough. But when there's no system in your country, it's very hard to produce champions in any sport; that's the bottom line," said Bhupathi.

'Happy to be part of the Padel ecosystem'

Bhupathi retired from professional tennis in 2016, and apart from keeping a close eye on the sport, he also leads his entrepreneurship ambitions. He is the CEO of SG Sports, Media and Entertainment (SGSE), which owns the Delhi SG Pipers franchise that competes in the revamped Hockey India League (HIL) and Ahmedabad SG Pipers in Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) tournament. He is also the co-founder of World Padel League, the third edition of which concluded on Saturday.

Bhupathi, who finds padel more difficult than pickleball, explaining how "it is a mix of tennis and squash", also spoke about his inclination towards these racquet sports, which are relatively new in the circuit.

"I think the padel ecosystem is very young in India, so the opportunity is massive across different verticals in the sport. So, the league obviously, the kind of quality of players that we have here, the padel fans in India don't get to see at all," he said.

Explaining the surge in popularity of these sports despite a short period, the tennis icon pointed to the convenience factor. "The consumer is just excited about being able to play a sport, and it's also accessible. There are lot of Pay and Play arenas, which, unlike tennis, unless you're a member of a club it's very hard to get a tennis court.

"People are putting up courts not only in tier one cities but in tier two cities as well. So, there's a long way to go, five-six years, but I think this sport will continue to grow every year, and I'm happy that we are part of that ecosystem," he noted.

Arjun Singh Verma, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of sports community platform Hudle, in an interaction with the publication, had highlighted a similar trend, but in pickleball. "We have seen a lot of growth in places like Surat, Vadodara, Jaipur, Indore, and Bhopal. We are seeing a lot of participation from people from these cities. But the infrastructure is not as much as we see in Tier I cities," said Verma.