Born on December 22, 1928, Naresh Kumar, an international tennis star, died at 93 following a brief illness attributed to age-related complications on Wednesday, 14 September.
The former Indian Davis Cup captain is survived by his wife Sunita, two daughters and a son. Kumar went on to make his mark in Indian tennis after Independence. He reached the final of the then Northern Championships, now Manchester Open, in England in 1949. He later made it to the Indian Davis Cup team in 1952 and represented India for eight consecutive years.
He was among the generation of Indian players who performed exceptionally well at a global scale. Having made it to the singles main draw at Wimbledon for nine consecutive years, his best performance was in 1955 when he reached the pre-quarterfinals. In 1958, he reached the third round of the French Open in 1958.
According to a report by The Hindu, Kumar did well in the doubles and reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals in 1953, 1955, and 1958.
Prior to his Grand Slam career, Kumar won two singles titles in the Irish Championships in 1952 and 1953. He also went on to win the singles crown in the Welsh Championship. He won a total of five career titles.
"We grew up idolising Naresh Kumar as the tennis star...He used to help us a lot and would often join us in playing doubles matches to show the finer aspects of the game. He was a perfect gentleman who was always working for the development of tennis in the country."Jaidip Mukerjea, Legendary Tennis Player and Naresh Kumar's Davis Cup team-mate in 1960.
Mukerjea added that Kumar's volley and smash were legendary. As a captain, Mukerjea said, Kumar was committed towards his teammate even when Mukerjea was an 18-year-old.
"He (Naresh Kumar) was always attending to me, massaging my legs and motivating me to go for the win," Mukerjea added.
(With inputs from The Hindu)
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