SOMDEV Devvarman was a scrawny kid with a weak serve when he entered the University of Virginia to study sociology seven years ago.
The Chennai-born player, however, embraced the advice of his tennis coaches to improve in all aspects of his game.
His determination to put his heart and soul into his game paid off as he made headlines for being the only collegiate player to have entered three consecutive finals at the NCAA men's tennis championship. His 44-1 win-loss record in 2008 is unprecedented.
Somdev turned pro with an extra bounce in his step and just weeks after graduating three years ago, he won a pair of Futures and a Challenger, and in less than two months, his ranking soared more than 500 spots into the top 250.
The baseliner's meteoric rise in the sport is proof that one does not have to sacrifice studies for sport.
"It is a norm for players to turn pro and play full-time at a very young age but as for me, I went through the college system to earn a degree and also improve my tennis," said Somdev, who is competing in the ATP Malaysian Open.
"I was fortunate to not have to go through the initial tough phases because I was confident after doing well at the end of my college career and kind of carried that into the pros, did well the first two months, and put the really, really tough work behind me. After that, it was a lot easier."
The past year has been Somdev's best to date at pro level as he captured the singles gold medal at the New Delhi Commonwealth Games and the singles and doubles titles at the Guangzhou Asian Games.
Somdev, however, has not won a tour title but came close on several occasions. A year after he turned pro, he was beaten by Croatia's Marin Cilic in the Chennai Open final before bowing out to South Africa's Kevin Anderson at the same stage in Johannesburg two years later.
"I may have turned pro late in my career but my standard of play is about the same as those at my age.
"I'll continue working on my game, try to get better in every aspect and, hopefully, soon I can break 50.
"If I get to that, then you don't kind of stop, you go for the next one.
"It's always just trying to get better," said Somdev, who reached a career-high No 62 in July but has since dropped 27 rungs.
Somdev arrived in Kuala Lumpur after a two-week break nursing a shoulder injury but managed to clear his first round match despite not being 100 per cent.
He, however, was beaten by Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis 7-5, 6-4 in a thrilling second round match on Wednesday.
