NEW DELHI: “Learning, enjoying, and sharing time and experiences with these young and talented players,” Rafael Nadal penned a post on X (formerly Twitter) not even a fortnight ago. The post featured an image of the tennis great at the center. To his left stood three teenage girls, and to his right, four more. On the far right, one could spot 15-year-old Maaya in her training attire, looking somewhat nervous, her right index finger tucked into her left fist.
Nervousness was quite palpable – after all, the 22-time Grand Slam champion was right there in person at his Rafa Nadal Academy on the island of Mallorca, his watchful, forever-fiery eyes evaluating the teens.
As for Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi, this was her first meetup with the “King of Clay” after taking the tennis scene by storm with her exceptional performance at the Mumbai Open earlier this year.
But here’s a fun fact: Mumbai wasn’t even on her calendar at the start of the year.
“First of all, playing the Mumbai Open wasn’t even part of the plan. My wildcard was confirmed just 2 days before the tournament,” Maaya, born to father Rajeshwaran and mother Revathi in a Tamil family, told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive chat. “I was very confident that I’d compete well. Honestly, I didn’t expect that I’d make it that far, but I just played match by match and gave my best.”
Romping past opponents far more experienced than her, the rising star made waves across the tennis fraternity.
As she reached the semi-finals at the Cricket Club of India and became the first 2009-born player to make semifinal of a WTA125 event, some even clasped their hands in prayer, hoping for an outlandish title win. But a defeat to 27-year-old Jil Teichmann in the semis brought Maaya’s dream run to an end.
“After losing in the semi-finals, I was a bit upset because I didn’t play as well as I hoped I would. But I had a lot of positives to take away from the Mumbai Open,” added the rising star following the best series of results in her professional circuit so far.
Even tennis was not part of Maaya’s plan until she turned eight. For her, it was initially just a “recreational sport” after school.
She decided to go pro when she was 10. At the heart of her journey are her parents, who, in Maaya’s words, have been incredibly supportive.
“I’m so blessed that my mom can travel with me. My home has always been my family, and also, I have a very good support system back home. Sometimes, I do miss them a lot,” she told TimesofIndia.com. “But specifically, I miss my dad so much. I’m very close to both my parents. I think if my dad would also be with me, I would feel very much like home.”
At such a young age, staying abroad can make anyone homesick. Yet, this is exactly what Maaya had always wanted. She recalled, “We were looking for a base in Europe last year, and the invitation from the Rafa Nadal Academy was quite surprising. But we were very happy that they took me in.”
An avid reader and movie buff, Maaya also loves baking – baking, as she bakes, those chants already labelling her as the “next big thing” in Indian tennis. “I’m definitely not worried about that. In fact, it’s very supportive and encouraging to see people believe in me,” she added.
Currently, she is more into wading through the pages of the novel “The Palace of Illusions” by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni as Maya reflected, “If I could tell something to my younger self now, it would be to trust myself and the good people around me, no matter what happened, no matter if I didn’t win, I just had to do what I love to do with all my heart.”
You’ve probably heard these sayings: A life without a goal is like a ship without a rudder, a car without a steering wheel… or, for tennis fans, Rafael Nadal without a Grand Slam (not quite a famous one yet), but you get the idea.
What is it that always drives Maaya?
“The ultimate goal for me is to become the world no. 1 and win slams,” sighed the current world no. 1 Aryna Sabalenka’s aficionado.