{"id":5893,"date":"2025-11-11T19:04:16","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T12:04:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/?p=5893"},"modified":"2025-11-11T20:49:19","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T13:49:19","slug":"a-guardian-angel-looking-over-ganuka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/a-guardian-angel-looking-over-ganuka\/","title":{"rendered":"A guardian angel looking over Ganuka"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ganuka Fernando\u2019s blossoming junior tennis career was almost nipped at the buds after the sudden demise of his father Thusan Fernando three years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His father suffered an unfortunate brain aneurysm rupture when he was just 47 and passed away leaving Ganuka\u2019s future in the sport in a limbo. His father, after all, was the person who encouraged Ganuka to take up tennis seriously when he was still studying at Grade 3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, there was a guardian angel looking after Ganuka \u2013 his tennis coach Dinith Pathiraja. Dinith had his young ward, then only 14, to put the grieve behind and refocus on his tennis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy coach is the person, who has been financially supporting my tennis participation ever since, Without him I would probably will not be playing,\u201d said Ganuka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ganuka with his dad Thusan (left) and coach Dinith (right)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The 17-year-old from the Sri Lankan port city of Negambo is determined to make a name for himself in tennis, despite coming from a cricket crazy country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ganuka is the sole Sri Lankan player at the 30th<\/sup> edition of the Tep Khunnah Memorial Cup, an ITF J30 event taking place at the Morodok Techo Tennis Complex. The sixth seed opened accounts with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Singaporean Justine Lie on Monday in the boy\u2019s singles and will play India\u2019s Shreyanth Mahanthesa in the second round tomorrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the boy\u2019s doubles first round, he and partner Hao Yi Zhang of China were up against another scratch pair, the French-Indian pairing of Myles Bonnard- Shreyanth, and the partnership emerged 6-4, 6-1 winners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They play Korean top seeds Shin Jaejun-Bon Hong Koo in the quarter-finals next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy expectations as always in any tournament is to win. It is the same here. My dream is to eventually break into the top 100 of the ATP Rankings,\u201d said Ganuka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With a world ranking of 811 in 2008, Harshana Godamnana became and still remains the highest ranked tennis player in Sri Lankan history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI believe I can improve and believe I will built what I need to reach the goal,\u201d said Ganuka, who admires the consistency of his idol Novak Djokovic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy strength in my game I believe is my consistency. But, I want to be as consistent as how Djokovic is,\u201d added Ganuka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tennis upstart opted out of playing in Japan for chance to earn a place in the Australian Open qualifiers as it clashed with the ongoing tournament in Phnom Penh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had played in the qualifiers for the past two years, but opted out this time to earn ranking points. The competition in Japan does not offer ranking points,\u201d added Ganuka, an A-Level student at the Peters College in Colombo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n