Are you kidding me? the 17-year-old shouted in disbelief. Shocked, hand raised to his head and a bemused smile on his face, Samir Banerjee had just created history by winning the 2021 Junior Wimbledon title. Samir, an Indian-American of Bengali origin defeated Victor Lilov in the final match that lasted one hour and 22 minutes.
Banerjee entered the Junior Championships at Wimbledon ranked at No. 19 in the boys’ rankings. He was not among the favorites to lift the trophy, but his performance astounded everyone. After the tournament, he has a career-high ITF junior combined ranking of 2.
The 6-ft-2 teenager came into this tournament with very low expectations. It was his second Junior Grand Slam appearance. After his loss in the first round at the Roland Garros(French Open), he was looking to win just one match. His goal was to play well and get one Slam win under the belt. But, destiny had much larger plans for him.
Post his win, he joins a prestigious list of Indian players Leander Paes, Yuki Bhambri, Ramesh Krishnan, and his father Ramanathan Krishnan, who had won junior singles Majors.
Another Bengali, Jaideep Mukherjee who is considered to be one of the greatest Tennis players of India, lost in the 1960 Junior Wimbledon final. Mukherjee is the grandson of the legendary Indian freedom fighter Desabandhu Chittaranjan Das.
Samir is a Novak Djokovic fan, and Leander Paes is his inspiration. He is elated to see his name beside Paes.
Samir Banerjee Family
Samir’s father, Kunal Banerjee, is from Assam and his mother, Usha Banerjee, is from Andhra Pradesh. They both met in the USA and got married there.
Samir Banerjee’s mother was born in Visakhapatnam. She completed her schooling at St Ann’s High School and grew in Tarnaka, Secunderabad. In the late 1980s, she went to the United States for her higher education.
Kunal Banerjee is a financial consultant, and Usha works in pharmaceuticals. Their elder daughter, Divya Banerjee, is currently in her third year of college. Samir was born in 2003 in America.
The Banerjee family’s roots trace back to the Northeast state of Assam. Samir’s grandfather, Hiranmay Banerjee, a resident of Assam, worked as the General Manager of Oil India Limited. He was posted in Digboi in the Tinsukia district. Samir’s father studied at IIT Mumbai and came to America in the late 1980s.
How Samir Got Into Tennis?
Kunal Banerjee and his brother were into sports. Even though they did not pursue it at a higher level, they had a culture of playing tennis and golf. And from the sporting environment at home, Samir developed an interest in sports.
Samir started playing when he was 5 or 6 years old. He used to accompany his father to the tennis courts on weekends. In the early days, Samir was interested in multiple games. He used to play baseball and soccer too while growing up, but the individual aspect of tennis attracted him to the sport.
His father’s friends were impressed with his tennis and advised him to admit Samir into a good tennis academy. That is how his tennis career began.
From childhood, Samir Banerjee rose rapidly in tennis through the ranks and participated in many junior events. In 2017, Sameer Banerjee lifted the trophy in the Under 14 American Winter Championship. He does not have a permanent training academy. He trains at several places.
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Samir Banerjee Indian Roots
The Banerjee family has made the U.S. their home since the late 1980s, but have stayed connected to their Indian roots.
Samir appreciates his deep roots in India. He has been to India so many times. He has played at the RK Khanna Tennis Stadium, New Delhi.
Many relatives of Sameer live in Kolkata. The Banerjee’s had been to Kolkata in 2015 and Sameer had also practiced for a few days in the famous South Club.
Samir loves the warmth of the people in Kolkata. He loves fish fry, Misti Doi and Rosogolla. He also likes Andhra and Hyderabadi food.
Samir Banerjee Future Plans
Samir’s parents are naturally over the moon with their son’s spectacular and rather unexpected victory in London.
Yet even though he has reached a Grand Slam title match, the Basking Ridge, New Jersey resident Samir will now take a break from the tour to attend Columbia University next year. He will pursue a degree in either political science or economics.
As stereotype Indian parents, they want him to focus on academics.
Cool, calm, and collected Samir Banerjee is also a solid student. And it was always important for him to go to a good academic institution. In the USA many colleges have a good tennis program, but his parents wanted a combination of strong tennis and academics. And, of the prestigious Ivy League colleges, Columbia is the best at tennis.
But, the Banerjee family has not shut the door on Samir eking out a tennis career for himself. However, a degree from Columbia will always have good value.
Long run, he would love to compete in the pro tournament and hopefully win it. College tennis is very strong in the U.S. Right now, his goal is to play college tennis and stay on in the US National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) tennis circuit.
