City referee on Wimbledon line
Sania Mirza will not be the only Hyderabadi on the hallowed courts of Wimbledon next month. Tennis referee and chair umpire J. Shiva Kumar Reddy has been selected as an official for the prestigious championships in London. “Getting a chance to officiate at Wimbledon is a dream come true. Ever since I started, I have always wanted to get there,” the overjoyed 34year-old told Deccan Chronicle on Wednesday.
It hasn’t been easy though. “I have been applying to the All England Tennis Club for the past 10 years,” Shiva, who is among five Indians on the officials’ list for the grass court event, said. “Representing India gives immense joy,” his smile widens.
He’s aware of the tough task ahead. “Every point is challenging, you cannot take your eyes off the ball. Sharp sight is the key and I am glad to be blessed with good eyes,” Shiva says.
He’s also received blessings from different people on his way up. “Telangana State Tennis Association secretary Ashok Kumar has supported me a lot. He was with me at every moment. TSTA as well as APLTA officials too have been of help to me. My special thanks to Mr KTR, president of TSTA,” Shiva says, adding “I also cannot forget my first coach Mr C. V. Nagaraj (at the Railway Recreation Club); Mr Nitin Kannamwar, my mentor in officiating and of course my parents.”
Shiva comes from a humble background. He played professional tennis at the national ranking level from 1990 to 2003 “before rising costs, sinking sponsorship and family situation” forced him out of the courts. “My father was a hockey player-turned Physical Education Teacher in a government school and mother a homemaker. Our family’s finances did not permit me to pursue the expensive game that tennis is,” he recalls.
Later, he decided to support the family “by officiating in national tournaments and satellite events played over weekends.”
That’s when things turned. “Mr Nithin Kanamwar, who was the regional coordinator for All India Tennis Association, was impressed with my work and suggested that I take up officiating seriously. I did my Level I course and soon got chances at international events. That exposed me to tournaments such as Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Hopman Cup, ATP World Tour events, WTA World Tour events, Commonwealth Games, World Islamic Games, Afro-Asian Games, World Youth Games, ATP Challenger, ITF Men & Women as well as ITF juniors,” Shiva explains.
It also provided him with some “unforgettable moments of officiating and sharing the court with players such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murry, David Ferrer, Stan Wawrinka, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Ana Ivanovic, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Li Na, Victoria Azarenka, Agnieska Radwanska among others, at the Dubai and Qatar Opens.”
The only senior International Tennis Federation certified White Badge Official from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh since 2005, Shiva is also a United States Professional Tennis Registry certified professional tennis coach.
When he’s not officiating matches, “I work as a freelance coach and conduct tournaments in all age groups. My life revolves around the court,” he laughs.
Come July, it will spiral into an entirely different orbit.
After family income did not permit him to pursue the expensive game that tennis is, former national level player Shiva took up officiating to support his father, a Physical Education Teacher, financially