India’s No.1 player Somdev Devvarman looks ahead after his first full season on the ATP World Tour in an exclusive interview to MobileESPN.

He is richer in experience after a relatively successful 2009. Somdev Devvarman will be at the fountainhead of India's tennis challenge in 2010. With more fire in his belly, Som says he can take on the world's best players. Excerpts from an exclusive chat with Bhagya Ayyavoo.

Bhagya Ayyavoo: Somdev, around this time last year, you were ranked 204. Now you are No.126, after hitting a career-best 116 on November 2. Besides these numbers, what are the other differences?

Somdev Devvarman: Last year, I played half a year (laughs) and this year I played a whole year. Now I have started choosing the right tournaments to play, picking the events I play best in. There's a lot of difference in how I prepare the traveling schedule for the whole year as well as deal mentally and physically with playing the whole year. It's completely different from playing just half a season. There are more opportunities, but, there is a necessity to be totally fit through the whole year. Obviously, my ranking is better as I had played for more months. But I feel next year is going to be way better than this year because I am more experienced. I'm looking forward to it.

BA: A lot of firsts for you this season - you reached your first ATP Tour final at the Chennai Open, made the main draw in Majors - both in singles (US Open) and doubles (Wimbledon), enjoyed your first win in Davis Cup as well as an unbeaten run this year that put India in the World Group. Despite achieving all this, do you feel you have missed out on something?

SD: Yes, there were many firsts in my first full season. That was expected. I think I did a lot of things this year I am really pleased with. I made some changes with my team and got a new coach on board. I have a really good coach who is very experienced and a very good fitness trainer. As far as missing out, I am really not sure. Other than Chennai (ATP event) I didn't have too many great results early in the year, may be that's one thing. This year I am hoping to have a better European tour than last year. I think I can definitely do better than that. I'm very capable of it. So, I am going to be mentally prepared for the whole challenge. Hopefully, we should put up a really good schedule and have some good results. That's the plan.

BA: You played the qualifying rounds of about eight ATP events entering the main draw of a couple and featured in 12 Challenger events as well. There were the Majors where you came very close to qualifying at Roland Garros while making the main draw of the US Open. What'll be your schedule in 2010?

SD: I think it has to be a healthy mix of both. What I did last year was good. Especially when my ranking is down, playing Challengers gives me a lot more opportunities to win matches slightly more easily. Even though the reward is less, it's important to have the mix. You have to go out there and win some matches; otherwise the tour can be really brutal if you keep losing a lot of first-rounds. So, I think playing Challengers is going to very important for me and doing well there will be the key for me to gain my ranking. Hopefully, I will keep playing the big events and maybe even some better results can come up. As far as scheduling goes, it's going to be pretty similar.

BA: You had a smooth run with respect to fitness this season. But towards the end, you had a shoulder problem. How serious was that?

SD: The shoulder is fine. It was a very mild tendinitis. I didn't want to risk it and get injured further (so I skipped a couple of events). I had a chance to make a run for the main draw at the Australian Open (by playing those events). Ultimately, that's where I want to be in a couple of years. But, at this point of my career, it is way more important to finish healthy than to worry about the main draw of one tournament. I think I made a really good decision. Because of that, I am going to have some extra time in the pre-season and be better prepared for 2010.

BA: As the Chennai Open nears, some of your fans are vigorously doing the calculations on the points that you have to defend as last season's finalist. What's running on your mind?

SD: One thing you learn from tennis is that it is always about improving your rankings and not defending points. It's more about how you're going to make as many points in one year. What you have done in a year is past and gone. I know that I am a good enough player and in the longer run, it's going to pay off. I won't be worried about defending my points. I will focus on how I can make more points. I will focus on playing well and achieving good results. The points and everything else will take care of itself.

BA: If you were to pick one performance (from 2009) that you would love to emulate time and again in 2010, which one would that be?

SD: One very big win for me was the one that helped me put India in the (Davis Cup). World Group. It wasn't one of my better performances with regards to my game. That was a very average match. But, given the conditions and the situation I was in, coming out with a win was one of the grittiest things I have ever done. I was very proud of my performance there. I don't see that very often. I would like to come out with that fight and energy and willpower in the coming season. If I do that, I will start playing really good tennis and everything else will take its place.

BA: From a winless season in 2008 to an unbeaten run this year in Davis Cup, did being the No.1 player in singles ties have any impact on your success rate?

SD: No matter whether you are 1, 2, 4 or 5 it's always your goal to go out there and give everything, mentally and physically. When we play Russia, it doesn't matter what position you start in. Their No.2 player might be a little weaker, but he will still be in the Top 20. You have to put in a really good effort; otherwise we have no chance of winning. I've come to realize that after playing Davis Cup.

BA: What are the lessons that you have learnt from this year?

SD: Play a smarter schedule, but a better one that will help me peak at the right times for Slams and Davis Cup ties and at the same time, which would keep my mind as well as my body fresh.

BA: You served up a few upset wins this year over top players Marin Cilic, Ivo Karlovic, Carlos Moya amongst others. In what way these wins inspire you?

SD: Most importantly, these wins give me a self belief that I can play at that level. It gives met the confidence that I can hang in at that level and compete with the best in the world. It keeps the fire in the belly. It keeps me motivated and makes me work harder. The drawback this season was the inconsistency in my performance at different tournaments at different times.

BA: The ATP website says you had 86 break-point opportunities this season but you managed only a 37 % conversion rate. Why does Somdev stop at these crucial points?

SD: That's definitely a little mental. I am working hard on that with my coach as to how to approach those points just like the way I played to get to that stage. I understand that converting those opportunities more often is going to be a huge key to me this coming season.