Prakash Amritraj has more than just his name inherited from father Vijay.
A day after Pat Cash complained of not many players practicing the serve and volley, Amritraj employed the art to great effect to overcome Brazil's Ricardo Mello 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the first round of the Chennai Open at the SDAT stadium in Chennai on Monday.
Amritraj's was the opening match of the main draw, which took off after brief showers during the opening ceremony. As the crowd started to run for shelter, Vijay Amritraj reassured them saying: "Stay on, Chennai will be like Wimbledon in more ways than one."
As if on cue, the threatening clouds moved on before they could disrupt the proceedings.
Prakash, after a slow start to the game, volleyed brilliantly to record his first win in the tournament on his fourth appearance.
Amritraj was a constant picture of energy for an hour and forty minutes, whirling round to get to the ball, falling down and making the shot and constantly pumping his fists on the chest. The younger Amritraj was as much a showman as his father.
"I wouldn't say it the best win of my career but it's certainly a step forward," said Amritraj after the match.
"To come back from a set down and play the third set stronger than the first was something. When you are not doing well there are lots of things going on in the mind, but to avoid them is a sign of maturity."
In another good result for India, Rohan Bopanna qualified for the main draw with a 7-6, 6-4 win over US-based Rajeev Ram. Bopanna also known as 'Bofors' fired 16 aces to win the match in 82 minutes.
Mello, ranked 11 in the world, made easy work of the first set, winning it in 27 minutes with strong ground strokes as Amritraj failed to find any answers.
"I was let down by the serve in the first set. Also I was playing his game, trying to beat him at the baseline but it wasn't working," Amritraj said.
But with the crowd behind him, the Indian came back strongly. He started to play to his strengths, approaching the net at every given opportunity and set up some beautiful volleys. The result: Mello was caught off-guard by the aggression and the passing shots came few and far between.
"I think the turning point came in the second set when I was serving at 1-1. I was a break down but managed to pull through. That gave me the confidence and changed the game," the 22-year-old said.
The lift in his game was evident at the Indian, ranked 267th, broke the Mello serve immediately in the next game to go 3-1 up. He then broke the Brazilian in the eighth game and win the set 6-2.
In the first game of the third set, Amritraj hurt his finger while trying to get down to the ball and Mello pounced on the lapse to break his serve to go 1-0 up.
"I was a little upset with the injury, because I had the momentum the juices were flowing. After the time out I cooled off a little but luckily was able to come back."
Amritraj broke back in the very next game and then a superb forehand return set up a 4-2 lead in the decider. His first serve percentage improved considerably from the first set, but a more telling statistic was that he won all the points on the first serve in the second and the third set.
Watching the amazing comeback was also his cousin, Stephen Amritraj, who Amritraj has paired with previously for the Chennai Open doubles.
"He hurt his knee last year and had to miss out of the tournament. I couldn't be feeling worse for him and the fact that he made it all the way here and sat there cheering for me meant a lot."
Amritraj is likely to face Czech Republic's Radek Stepanek in the second round.
Photograph: Didbyangshu Sarkar/AFP/Getty Images
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