Indore teen gets into Aus Open

Indore: Indore’s teenage tennis sensation Mahak Jain has scored a direct entry to the Australian Open 2017 Junior, becoming the first tennis player from the state to make it to any grand slam tournament.
Ranked 47 in the world, the 15-year-old’s dream run continues — she won two ITF junior single titles last year. Mahak and Ahmedabad girl Zeel Desai, who ranks 34 in the world juniors, will keep the Indian flag flying at Melbourne.
Mahak could barely contain her excitement when TOI got in touch with her.She is already in Melbourne and her first challenge is to get used to the weather, she said. “A few days ago I was playing in Delhi’s 5-degree chill and now it’s 35 degrees in Melbourne,” she said. The draw will be on Sunday and Mahak is eager to know who she will be up against.
The Australian Open isn’t the only thing on her mind — she’s preparing for her school finals as well. “With unbelievable support from my school for sports as well as studies, I am equally focused and prepared for my school exams later this year,” said Mahak.
A Class IX student of Daly College — one of the top-ranked schools in Indore — she is good at studies. The school stands like a rock beside her, allowing her to skip morning classes so that she can practice and even adjusting teaching and exam schedules for her tournaments. Teachers take special classes on Sundays for her.
Mahak’s parents, too, have set an example. They moved to Indore about seven years ago so that she can train here. The Madhya Pradesh Tennis Association has praised Mahak for bringing glory to the state.
Navneet Solanki, Mahak’s science teacher, said, “She finds time to study despite her busy schedule and politely takes prior appointments from teachers to study. She is not only a promising player but a promising student as well. She is reaching new heights but is still so very down-to-earth that if we go to see her play, she stops and greets us first.”