There is absolutely no doubt that Shruti Ahlawat is an exciting prospect, who has gone through quite a lot at 19, but the coach has lent clarity by dissecting every aspect with the precision of a surgeon. | Photo Credit: Kamesh Srinivasan

Shruti Ahlawat is easily the best power striker in Indian women’s tennis today.

That is saying something, considering the way Vaishnavi Adkar can hammer the ball, or Shrivalli Bhamidipaty can sizzle on a fast court.

By winning the ITF women’s title in Delhi on Sunday, beating the versatile Zuzanna Kolonus of Poland 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(3), the 19-year-old Shruti asserted that she was a more mature artisan than a mere power player.

At a time when leading players like Shrivalli and Riya Bhatia are out of the circuit, Shruti has provided fresh hope.

For someone who was No. 48 in the junior world rankings, with appearances at Wimbledon and Australian Open under her belt, and having won the Asia-Oceania junior title, Shruti had lost nearly three years in the women’s circuit owing to a back injury.

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Long ago, after she was part of the under-12 team that won the South Asia title in 2017 in Kathmandu, and had soon got into the European circuit, Shruti was termed a “most versatile player in her age group, with an insatiable hunger to win”, by coach Namita Bal.

Much later, Shruti had given a hint of her ability by making the quarterfinals of her first two ITF women’s tournaments in Jhajjar and Gurugram in 2022.

On her return from the long lay-off, and after shuffling different coaching systems, Shruti has had a reasonably long stint with coach Ashutosh Singh at the High Performance Centre in DLTA.

A man of few words, Ashutosh — the coach of the Indian Davis Cup team that won ties against Switzerland and the Netherlands in the recent past — does have a lot to say about the exciting prospect of Shruti.

In September last year, Shruti was on the verge of winning her maiden title when she led 4-2 in the third set of the final against Zeel Desai in Gurugram. A few glaring errors saw Shruti stumble to defeat, bowing to the determination of Zeel then.

Two weeks back in Panipat, Shruti looked good for the title before she tumbled in the semifinals to the eventual champion, the 34-year-old Michika Ozeki of Japan, in three sets in energy sapping conditions.

The defeats may have been disheartening for Shruti, but coach Ashutosh put things in perspective, with his candid observation.

“From a coaching lens, I do feel that she wasn’t ready earlier. She had the game but not the ability to repeat under stress. Growth in tennis is not linear. It is physical, technical and largely mental. Now, Shruti is starting to connect these pieces”, said Ashutosh.

Of course, winning the title at her training place was special. Maybe, it brought the best from her.

“It was satisfying to see Shruti win her maiden pro title. More than happiness, it was a validation. What matters to me is whether the player is beginning to understand the way to win. This week, Shruti showed signs of that shift. Winning where you train shows your ability to handle familiarity, expectation and scrutiny. It was an important step. I can relate to it, as I had won the National men’s title in 2007, at the DLTA, my training base”, observed Ashutosh.

Was the title in his mind, especially after a good show the previous week by Shruti in Panipat?

“My expectation was simple. She had to go deeper into the week with better decision-making. Not necessarily to win the title. Back-to-back weeks test recovery, clarity and discipline. She managed that well. Also, I thought she was carrying a feeling that she had missed the title in Panipat”, said the coach.

Quite distinctly, Shruti was not at her physical best in terms of mobility and agility. Yet, the manner she played the whole tournament, especially the final in a vibrant atmosphere against a high quality player, showed her resolve to climb to a higher standard when challenged.

“It was the most encouraging part. Shruti did not get carried away by the energy or the occasion. She stayed within her patterns. That was not easy, especially in front of a young crowd where emotions can take over”, acknowledged Ashutosh.

The coach was not ready to accept that Shruti was as yet a “big match player”.

“It is too early to label. She does show an appetite for challenge. Some players shrink in the court in big moments, she is beginning to expand into it. That is a good sign for me”, he said.

In back-to-back weeks, Shruti beat the top seeds. In Panipat, she had beaten Vaidehee Chaudhari in three sets in the quarterfinals after losing the first set. In Delhi, she beat top seed Zeel Desai in the quarterfinal in the second set tie-break.

“Zeel is an experienced player and has evolved well. The way Shruti adjusted tactically and emotionally, it was a good sign. She didn’t panic when momentum shifted. She solved the problem, which is a higher order skill in any sport,” said Ashutosh.

The 14-year-old Jensi Kanabar had caught everyone’s imagination as she made it to the singles and doubles semifinals, after having reached the Asian junior final in Pune the previous week.

In fact, Jensi was about to play the qualifying event, when the Tournament Director, Vishal Uppal, offered her a main draw wild card.

After trailing 2-4 against the free-stroking Jensi, who moves well and sports a high degree of concentration and composure, Shruti won the next 10 games to make it look lopsided.

“Matches like that are tricky. Young players bring freedom and unpredictability. Shruti handled it professionally. No over-reaction, no complacency. It was clinical. That maturity is developing”, he said.

Watching her play, Shruti reminds one of Vijay Amritraj’s observation on Mahesh Bhupathi in the early days of the multiple Grand Slam champion.

“For every five percent he moves better, Mahesh will be a 50 per cent better player,” Vijay had said then.

That observation fits Shruti pretty nicely. She has indeed worked very hard to reach where she has, but seeing her repeatedly hit her calf muscle with the racquet during matches, does reveal that she gets frustrated about not moving as briskly as she would like.

“To improve mobility and agility is an ongoing, daily process. Building her movement from the ground up, efficiency, balance and repeatability. At the international level, movement is not just physical. It is decision-based. She is improving, but there is a lot of grunt work ahead,” the quite erudite Ashutosh said.

“Shruti needs to build robustness. The ability to sustain intensity across weeks, not just matches. Her ball striking is a strength, but unless the body supports it under fatigue, it won’t hold at higher levels,” the coach added.

It is a very exciting time in Indian women’s tennis as two Grand Slam champions, Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna have schemes to nurture the best to match world standards.

“Those initiatives are valuable as the champions know what it takes to succeed. Shruti, as a player and as a person, is grounded. She comes from a family that understands physical effort, where they were forced to be patient. If the environment is right, she will benefit. She is generating interest from well wishers for which she is grateful. There is more awareness and support, both from corporates and government. I wish the support to be structured and long-term, not event-based. Players need continuity. I do see an opening for her, provided it is approached professionally”, said Ashutosh.

There has always been a lot of excitement about Shruti’s potential, whenever she was fit and competing.

“Potential is a dangerous word in tennis. It creates expectation without accountability! What I see is a player who has gone through adversity and is now learning to rebuild. That process, if sustained, can take her to a very high competitive level globally”, said the coach.

Ashutosh is quite clear about the road ahead for Shruti.

“Strip it down to what will move the needle. Build a body that can repeat high intensity tennis five matches in a week, not just one or two. Tighten first serve patterns, so that she starts more points on her terms. Improve first-step speed and recovery steps. Right now that is the difference between neutral and defensive positions at this level. Most importantly, sharpen decision making under pressure, fewer hopeful shots, more percentage play with intent. The goal is not to play better ‘some of the time’, but to raise her base level”, he said.

The coach feels that staying on court consistently is a non-negotiable. She has to improve her win-rate against top-400 level opponents. Establish a reliable serve plus first ball combination, along with movement patterns that hold up late in matches. In a nutshell, earn the right to step up levels by dominating current ones, “not scraping through”.

“Everything is tied to building a game that travels internationally”, he said.

For the coach, there is no confusion about the growth ahead for Shruti.

“There is no mystery here. The gap between promise and established level is physical resilience and clarity under pressure. Technique is largely in place. What decides outcomes is how well the body and mind hold shape, deep into matches and across weeks. Shruti’s work is not about adding more, it is about removing inefficiency. Cleaner movement, clear decisions, stronger repeatability. If she commits to that with discipline, results will follow. Players like Shruti will need patience from themselves and from the ecosystem. She has the ability, but more importantly, she is beginning to understand the process. That gives her a real chance,” he said.

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Competition may be the key for Shruti’s growth, as she has only played 11 tournaments in the professional women’s circuit so far.

“To me, the next step is not about matches. It is about what she does between them. High performance has to become her daily standard in training. That means every session has intent, movement done at match speed, not practice speed. Serve routines repeated until they hold under fatigue. Point construction drilled with clarity, not just rallying”, Ashutosh stressed.

There is more to do in terms of recovery, nutrition and off-court work, “with the same seriousness as hitting”.

“Equally important, she cannot afford to let mental distractions, big or small, bleed into her training. At this level, even minor inconsistencies in focus compound quickly. Training has to be a protected space - clear, present and disciplined. There has to be higher integration with the full support system. Regular communication with the coach, strength and conditioning, physio, mental conditioning, yoga and sports science team is not optional, but essential”, he said.

The coach wants to follow a systematic and scientific pathway towards progress, rather than “hoping for things to fall in place”.

“This phase of her career is time sensitive. The window to build these habits and structures physically, mentally and professionally, is now. If Shruti and her family, support system, align around that urgency and commit to it daily, she gives herself a real chance to convert potential into something more concrete”, concluded Ashutosh.

There is absolutely no doubt that Shruti Ahlawat is an exciting prospect, who has gone through quite a lot at 19, but the coach has lent clarity by dissecting every aspect with the precision of a surgeon.

There is much more than mere hope that a champion is on the right track!

Published on May 05, 2026