Five-year-old Kerala girl gets pat on the back from Rafael Nadal for her tennis skill

A five year old girl in Kerala has received an appreciation message from tennis player Rafael Nadal for her tennis skills.

Viviktha Visakh, hailing from Kerala capital Thiruvananthapuram, got the rare opportunity through a talent search by Kia Motors.

Viviktha's father Visakh, who is a former state junior champion in tennis, told DH that he just posted a short video of Viviktha doing deft volley skills in house during the lockdown days on May 28, a few days ahead of her fifth birthday.

"We were unaware of any such talent search going on. I got a message through Instagram other day from Kia Motors World Wide about the recognition and seeking permission for reposting the video. Subsequently a video of Nadal personally congratulating Viviktha was posted by Kia in the social media a few days back," said Visakh.

Nadal says in the video that, “Hello Viviktha, how are you? I love seeing how dedicated you are to your tennis. You have some very good skills and you are only five years old. So Kia and I want to give you a gift to motivate you to keep working hard. I hope you enjoy the prize. Stay safe and see you soon.”

Visakh, who is now working as project manager in an MNC, is an international certified tennis coach. He used to give coaching to Viviktha as she was showing in interest towards the game right from the age of three. She also used to regularly accompany her father to tennis court.

"This certainly will be a huge motivation to the family and Viviktha. Such unbelievable appreciation and recognition for talents can only make kids believe in themselves and work hard," said Visakh who had played at the national level also.