The launch has been perfect so far. Three years down the road and Indian teenager Navdeep Singh is perched at the doorstep of an entry into the big league of tennis.

But these three years gone by have tried and tested the New Delhi-born.

At the onset of his career at the John Hicks Academy in the UK, Navdeep nearly took the flight back home after the coach sent him on a two-hour endurance session.

"That was so draining that I started vomiting. I just couldn't take it. I needed to get back home and be with my parents," the teenager recounts.

He did call his father D.J. Singh, who managed to stall his son's intentions. "At no cost did I want him to return," D.J. Singh recalls.

"So much of hard work and investment had gone into the whole plan of things that I did not want to see Navdeep give up so easily in pursuing a dream."

That insistence helped and Navdeep stayed back. Hicks found an ideal ally in a keen Indian lad who was willing to maintain an ambitious work ethics, just like another youngster called Tim Henman a few years before him.

"I think that was the most memorable day of my life. Had I taken the step to return to Dubai, who knows where I would have been?" the 18-year-old recalls.

Those three years have had their highs for the youngster. He has achieved a career perch of No.63 on the ITF Junior Rankings. And more recently, he was one of the rare Indians of course keeping in mind the Indian Express brigade of Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi who have managed to play in the main draw of a Grand Slam.

And that's one of the reasons Flushing Meadows stays dear to Navdeep. It was at the US Open earlier this year that the Indian managed to get past two qualifying round draws to enter the main competition for the juniors for the very first time in his fledgling career.

"I was unwell. I had a viral infection and the doctor had advised me to avoid playing," he states.

But the main draw of a Grand Slam, and that, too, for the very first time in his career, was too much to keep aside. He played Philip Simmons of the US and lost in straight sets 6-4, 7-5. However, to his credit, Navdeep was up 3-0 in the first set and 3-1 in the second, till the 6.3ft American put an end to his moves.

However, the start has been made. Besides the lessons derived from playing at the highest level, Navdeep finds himself at the doorstep of a brand new world of tennis which he eyes as the future for him.

And given the fact that he tried and failed on two earlier occasions, to play in a Grand Slam at the French Open and Wimbledon.

Navdeep got himself interested in the game as a five-year-old who used to accompany his father to the courts. "Though I have played for my university back in India, I am more of a leisure player," D.J. Singh admits.

Crucial early years

But those early years proved crucial and the youngster showed signs of greater things, which made his father turn to professional help in Europe to tutor his young son. He packed him off to Hicks and that is when it all began.

However, due to the fact that Navdeep grew up in Dubai, he feels he has missed out a lot on time.

"I found that players my age were far advanced. So I had to do the next best thing… and that was to make up for lost time by putting in extra hours of work both on and off the court," Navdeep states.

It is this extra dosage of work that has brought him to where he presently stands. "Suddenly, there is a lot of belief… from myself for my sake and from others," Navdeep smiles.

This confidence has translated into Adidas India signing an apparel deal with him recently. The Boris Becker racquet company, Volkl International, has a deal with Navdeep and Indian Airlines already had him under their wings for travel arrangements. Next came the ITF itself which asked Navdeep to model for their new ITF Juniors T-shirt.

"I believe this is just the start. A lot more still needs to be done if I am to aspire for greater things for myself and my country," Navdeep states.

India has already taken notice of this youngster who won the under-18 national title last year with Anil Khanna, the general secretary of the Indian Tennis Association, offering Navdeep a wild card for the ATP Futures tournament to be played at the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association (DLTA) courts.

"With great regret I could not accept the invite as I need time to recuperate and get myself back on track before I start a gruelling year next season," Navdeep says.

"The Indian Government, too, has been willing to lend a helping hand. But we will certainly have to do something fast to ensure that he stays on track for achieving what he is capable of in tennis," interjects his father.

"I play for passion and I play for pride. And these are two things that keep me going," the teenager chips in.