Top American junior Adhithya Ganesan made his ATP Tour debut at the Infosys ATP Newport Hall of Fame event last week. Adhithya played against ATP 203 Marc Polmans and lost by a scoreline of 2-6 2-6 in the qualifying rounds.

18 yr old Adhithya is a former top-25 junior and plays for Florida Gators in the US College tennis. ITD caught up with him to get his perspective.

Thoughts on your ATP Tour debut?
It’s been a good experience. I’ve got a chance to hit with a lot of different pros, practice with them, see how they do things. First match I played, I was a little nervous, a little tight, but in the end it was a good experience.

What was the game plan coming into this match?
Just try to play my game, come to the net as much as I can, use my slice to keep it low, and try to play as aggressive as possible.

Anything you could have done differently?
I’d say play a little bit more looser, a little bit more free in my match. I think I let the pressure get to me, but it’s a good lesson learned.

Last year you played on grass at the Roehampton for Wimbledon Junior Qualifiers. How different were the playing conditions here?
It’s definitely a lot slower here, but more humid, a lot warmer, so still a little bit different, but kind of similar though.

You have played several pro tournaments over the past year, while also playing college tennis for Florida Gators. How are you balancing both?
During the season for School I mainly played college tournaments, college matches, but in the summer I’ve been playing a lot of pro tournaments. I try to play more in the fall as well.

What is your schedule for the next month or two?
I’ll play Kalamazoo and train for the next three weeks, and play more ITF Futures in August, September, or the fall.

Rapid fire.

Hobby? Tennis.

Favorite travel destination? Miami.

A place that you have not been, but would like to go there? Spain.

Favorite tennis player? Jannik Sinner.

Favorite movie? Despicable Me.

A loss that hurt you the most? Nothing really hurt me that much.

Favorite grand slam? US Open.

Favorite tourney amongst the ones that you’ve played? US Open.

Dream doubles and mixed doubles partner?
Doubles partner Rohan Bopanna
Mixed – I don’t have a dream partner.

Toughest opponent face so far? So far, it would be Marc Polmans