Sunitha Rao thread ...

[vparam]

How pathetic is the media in India that they can not find out anything about Sunitha in terms of why she has stopped playing for close to 6 months now. Sunitha had been the #2 female player in India for a long time and it seems the media has decided to not even bother to publish an update on her status. I guess the words "investigative reporting" does not exist in their vocabulary! We all know she has been on a terrible losing streak, but to completely ignore her is unbelievable.

[gautam]

Finally i found some news about Sunitha. The reason why she has stopped playing is not beacuse of an injury which we guys presumed but beacuse she is struggling financially and she doesnt know whether she can continue to play or on. .She hasnt got any help from the goverment and also doesnt have a sponsor and therefore it is very unlikely she will meake a comeback.

[kaustav]

Very sad indeed...

[S_K_S]

Sunitha has had a real fight at each and every stage of her career. I hope this is not the end. If anyone who knows her is reading this then please let her know that there is a network of fans willing to help out with accommodation and any other support. Maybe she can schedule some tournaments around that. Best way to make contact would be message or e-mail the likes of Jay, myself, Jaydeep or Pk Basu.

[jaydeep]

When I read Gautam's message in the morning I was no mood of posting anything ... Feeling very sorry for her, it would be great if we somehow manage to help her.

[sameerph]

Very sad indeed. Now with the new rule, Sunitha will not be able to play in Fed cup too. So, the chances of any support form Indian govt./ AITA looks very thin.

[jayakris]

I think that coach Bill (many would remember his posts attacking everybody in Indin tennis), who was with her for many years, did not help her cause one bit. He seemed to not have much of peoples skills at all. On her own part, I don't know if she ever really did what it took to get people to help her either. She seemed to be somebody who was badly affected by her relationship to her dad (who was a severely controlling personality who badly hampered her for years), and then the scars left from splitting away from dad - the WTA putting a restraining order on her dad and all that!. Her photoshoot for Maxim, though not nude or anything (but "racy" I guess?) made some news in Indian tennis circles - and that also did not help her cause. It is all a pretty sad story.

She was certainly talented but also injury-affected for most of her career. The other thing is that I am not sure if she ever had the kind of superlative items in her tennis that would have easily taken her to top-75 or higher. She was all-rond good/solid and could have reached top-100, had a few things go right though.

Jay

[prassana]

Birmingham tourney reminds me about her..any newz on her..what a sad story??

[knarayen]

For somebody like Sunita, at her stage in her career - she really needs to find a boyfriend/husband who can support her in her tennis aspirations.

I know some of you will start snickering/laughing when I say this - but this is so crucial for a tennis player's development - witness the kind of support that Li Na, Federer, and Kim Clijsters get from their respective spouses and I think you will understand what I am getting at. That kind of stability can dramatically change a player's fortunes - trust me. In addition to a good coach of course....with this kind of personal stability even a coach's shenanigans can be tolerated at times.

Looks like her dad stepped over the line at some point - which is really very very sad to hear. This is the kind of thing that can destroy a tennis player's career.

It looks like Sunita must be nearing about 27-28 by now - crucial years - any delay now will spell the end of her tennis career.

Prof

[prasen9]

Sunitha is 25 now, right? She stopped playing a couple of years ago if I remember correctly. Somewhat tragic.

[Omkara]

Yup she is 25....completed 25 last October

[sameerph]

Sunitha played her last professional tournament in April 2009. It dosen't look likely that she will play any more on pro circuit. This is sad as pretty much our entire batch of girls who were expected to follow Sania - Sunitha, Shikha/ Neha Uberoi , Ankita / Sanaa Bhambri, Isha Lakhani seem to have given up on their tennis careers.