It appears Sathiyan Gnanasekaran is finally ready to wear the crown. At world #37, Gnanasekaran (pictured) is currently ranked a close second in his native India behind all-time great Sharath Kamal Achanta, listed at #32. While Gnanasekaran, 28, has labored his entire career to date in the shadow of Achanta, 39, there are signs that the torch is being passed. In February of this year, Gnanasekaran and Achanta clashed in the men's singles final of India's national championships. Achanta, already the record-holder with nine national titles, was looking to put it out of reach with an even 10. Gnanasekaran, on the other hand, was looking for his first win after three heartbreaking runner-up finishes. When the dust settled, it was Gnanasekaran feeling the weight of the trophy for the first time. Now, the two friendly rivals have both traveled to Tunisia for the WTT Contender Tunis. Once again, the evidence points toward the inevitable ascendancy of Gnanasekaran. Gnanasekaran and Achanta each entered the men's singles sweepstakes. While Achanta suffered a first-round upset to world #63 Vitor Ishiy of Brazil, Gnanasekaran has cruised to the quarterfinals. Tomorrow, he takes on world #52 Dang Qiu of Germany for a shot at the final four. The two Indian aces also both signed up for men's doubles, although not as partners. Achanta, partnered with Manav Thakkar, succumbed in today's quarterfinals to Hungary's Nandor Ecseki and Adam Szudi, the top-seeded team in the event. Tomorrow, Gnanasekaran and compatriot Harmeet Desai will try their luck against the same Hungarian duo in the semis. As if contending for two titles were not sufficient, Gnanasekaran is also alive and well in the mixed doubles. Joining forces with his countrywoman Manika Batra, Gnanasekaran will take on another top-seeded pair in tomorrow's semi's, this time in the form of France's Jia Nan Yuan and Emmanuel Lebesson. (As Achanta did not enter in the event, however, here it is considerably more difficult to compare their performances.) Intriguingly, the 400 world ranking points afforded the men's singles winner would be just enough to propel Gnanasekaran past Achanta in the world rankings. Regardless of whether he nabs the domestic lead in one fell swoop or in dribs and drabs, Gnanasekaran seems destined to wear the crown in India for the foreseeable future. Then and only then will Sathiyan Gnanasekaran understand the pressure of being in the crosshairs of the next generation of players, just as Sharath Kamal Achanta was for him. The crown for which he has so long striven is, upon closer inspection, a gilded target.

More at The Hindu