Aswin Vijayaragavan, a promising Indian tennis player, writes about his childhood and how he took up competitive tennis.

I started playing tennis when I was 10 years old. My inspiration is my brother, who, I used to watch play tennis for hours. To tell you the truth, I didn't enjoy the game initially, so I shifted to cricket. But a few months later when I started watching my brother play, I started liking the game and decided to play myself. Thereafter, I could hardly resist my temptation to hold the racquet.

Gradually I learnt the techniques and a year later I played my first tournament at R.R.C (Secunderabad). It was an under-12 event. For a novice, losing in the second round, I thought was not bad. I was satisfied with my play. I continued playing few more u-12 events and I emerged victorious in two tournaments as well.

Then I decided to go to the next level. My parents and coaches too encouraged me a lot. I played some under-14 tournaments but initially I did not do that well. But I improved and started participating in national events. I frequently hit the headlines after reaching two national finals and winning two doubles titles in u-14 category.

The next step was under-18. And it was the same story there as well. I didn't have the best of starts but gradually I improved. Then I began playing some ITF juniors abroad. My first overseas meet was in Morocco, which was very tough as I could not get past the second round. But it was a good learning experience. I played few more junior tournaments and had a hard time winning.

But, finally I got a break in Pakistan where I made it to the semi-finals in both singles and doubles. This gave me a lot of confidence and then my good run continued.

In Chennai, I performed wonderfully before losing in singles final, while in doubles I lost in the semifinals.

My ranking improved with these good shows and I broke into the top 500. After Grade 5 I began playing Grade 4's and 3's and I fared pretty well. My best ITF junior ranking was 145 in the world and No. 2 in the country. My best performance in ITF courier was beating an Ukranian, who was 88th ranked in the world. I had a consistent juniors' career as I made it to the semis and finals almost in every tournament. I just missed the main draw of the junior Australian Open.

Then I started playing some men's tournaments. And those turned out to be the biggest challenges. My performance at the national level has always been good. Making it to the quarter-finals in my first AITA men's tourney was a big achievement for me. I began playing Futures in India and made it to two ATP points. But I decided to go to the States to pursue my studies. I played one future tournament before I left for the US and lost in quarters. My best men's ranking was 1000.

I am pursuing my under-graduation in the US in the University of Texas Panamerican. I have two more years left to graduate. So I want to make the most of these two years. My main aim is to improve as much as I can and get ready for some tough tennis.

After graduating, I will continue to play tournaments and my motto in life is to break into the top 100 and play the Grand Slams. I am quite optimistic of that.

I would like to thank my mom, dad and my brother for supporting me in all my decisions.

(As told to Sudeer Mahavaadi)