On Sunday, when the entire world had their eyes set on Novak Djokovic who leveled Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer‘s Grand Slam record with 20 titles, an Indian-American teenager won his first Grand Slam junior title at Wimbledon.
Meet Samir Banerjee, a 17-year-old boy who has joined the league of Yukti Bhambir, Ramesh Krishnan and Ramanathan Krishnan to have won Junior Grand Slam titles.
Banerjee beat Victor Lilov 7-5-6-3 in the summit clash to achieve the feat in his second Grand Slam.
Remember the name – Samir Banerjee 🇺🇸
The American wins his first junior Grand Slam singles title by beating Victor Lilov in the boys’ singles final#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Xc3ueczg5m
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 11, 2021
In a conversation with News 18 Bangla, he said,
“After losing French open I thought I would not make it. It feels great now. I am confident about my future in Tennis.”
“This was way beyond my wildest dreams.”
Samir Banerjee exceeds his own expectations with a title victory.#Wimbledon
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 11, 2021
Though Banerjee represented America, the teenager got a lot of support and cheer for Indians at the Wimbledon. He told the Indian Express,
“Just looking into the crowd, there were a lot of Indians there, supporting, me a lot. I really appreciated that. Some were shouting very loudly, some asked me for photographs afterward. I’m obviously not from India, I’m American. But having Indian relatives and parents, it makes me appreciate the culture and everything that goes with it.”
A future men’s champion?
Samir Banerjee might well be a name you become more familiar with in the future#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/byAEBwBrSp
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 11, 2021
Born in the US, Samir Banerjee grew up in New Jersey after his parents moved to the States in the 80s. His father is from Assam and his mother is from Andhra Pradesh. But he is in touch with his roots back home due to his extended family in Kolkata. In fact, he visited the City of Joy in 2015 when he played for the South Club.
“Kolkata people are loving, people welcomed me there with open arms. They allow me to play in Kolkata and I love fish fry, mishti doi and rosogolla.”
It was during his childhood that he took up tennis and instantly fell in love with the game. He rose through the ranks with the support of his family. Earlier, he competed at the French Open, wherein he crashed out at the first round.
However, Wimbledon turned out to be a different story for Banerjee. It is after 12 years that an Indian has bagged the junior Grand Slam. In 2009, Yukti Bhambri brought home the Australian Open.
After pocketing his win at the Wimbledon, the 6 feet 2-inch tennis player is now looking forward to his college life at the Columbia University. The teenager will pursue his degree either in politics or economics.
“I have to re-evaluate my options. I’m playing well and this is a really good stepping stone. I’m going to play more professional tournaments to see where I stand, but as if now college is definitely in the picture. I think it’ll be a good step for me, but this is a good step to the pro route. I’ll have to make a decision later on because I still have another year before I go to college,” he added.
Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor celebrated Banerjee’s win on Twitter.
Since we don’t have much to cheer about in world tennis, let’s enjoy the vicarious pleasure of hailing an Indian-American win! Samir Banerjee of New Jersey wins the Wimbledon Boys’ Singles Final [defeating a Russian-American]: https://t.co/WFTbC9VaKm
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) July 11, 2021
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