Nishesh Basavareddy finds clay-court groove after training at USTA National Campus

Nishesh Basavareddy recalls traveling to Paris at age 12 to play a junior tournament in the French capital. It was one of the first times he was exposed to red clay courts, coinciding with his visits to the USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla.

Now living out his dream as a professional tennis player, the American is back in France and again competing on clay. Set to celebrate his 20th birthday on Friday, Basavareddy captured his first clay-court win at ATP Challenger Tour level or above at the Open Aix Provence Crédit Agricole on Tuesday. Before this month, Basavareddy had not competed on clay since the junior Roland Garros event in 2022.

“[In March], I was dealing with a little bit of an injury, so I had to take a little bit of time off. I had to skip Miami," Basavareddy told ATPTour.com. "But then I started prepping on the red clay in Orlando at the national center. I was there for about 10 days before I headed to Bucharest for my first European clay event."

Read the full feature on ATPTour.com: More sliding & sore hips! #NextGenATP Basavareddy learning the ropes on clay