S M Krishna: Love-all politician served and volleyed quite well on political turf

Bengaluru: Far and few politicians have a flair for sport in Karnataka. Former chief minister and external affairs minister S M Krishna was someone who led such a rare list.  

The Mandya man, who fell in love with tennis as a young boy, was often seen swinging a racquet with his group of friends at the Bangalore Club - even as the chief minister. On most evenings, Krishna drove down on his own to spend some time on the courts to catch a breath away from his round-the-clock political life. 

The tennis enthusiast, hence, became the most sought-after candidate for the position of president at the Karnataka Lawn Tennis Association, which he went on to serve from 1999 to 2020. His grand plans, including bringing big-ticket events to Karnataka, are said to have changed the face of the sport in the state. 

“When I went to him for the first time with the request, he readily accepted,” reminisced Sunder Raju, the secretary of KSLTA in 1999. 

“He gave us every window of opportunity to improve. If we were able to change the fabric of tennis in the state and in my mind, also in the country, he was the one who was responsible for it,” said Raju. 

Among Krishna’s main objectives was the development of tennis apart from creating interest and buzz for it across the state. The first of his initiatives was to upgrade the KSLTA. The run-down facility with clay courts and unkept gallery, over the next few years, would go on to become a state-of-the-art tennis stadium in the heart of the city. 

An avid follower of Bjorn Borg, Boris Becker and later a fan of Swiss great Roger Federer, Krishna was instrumental in bringing world-class events, such as the Legends Tour, World Doubles Championships and the WTA Indian Open - an event featuring Williams’ sisters (Serena and Venus) along with other top women players such as Jelena Jankovic and Patty Schnyder at the facility nestled in Cubbon Park in 2008.

“He was the governor of Maharashtra at that time. Despite being away, it was Krishna who helped us get sponsorships and make it a huge success,” said Raju.   

“But his biggest contribution was taking tennis beyond Bangalore. He wanted the sport to be spread across districts,” said Sunil Yajaman, the current joint secretary of KSLTA. 

“It was in 2002 that tennis branched out to Gulbarga (now Kalaburagi), with the first tennis complex built, and later hosted an ITF tournament. This was when the journey of district associations started, where we built multiple complexes. We are the only state to have 12 districts with international standard courts that can host ITF events... some also capable of holding ATP Challenger events,” said Yajaman. 

Perhaps, this understanding of sporting nuances was what gave Krishna a better insight into the dos and don’ts on the playground of politics. And, by the looks of it, he served and volleyed quite well in a political career that lasted six decades long.