Big guy, bigger ambitions

But the lanky lad will first need to take the "disappointing bronze" from the British Junior Open into his long stride, even as he winds up his colt career without the prestigious title he was coveting for the longest. "I wasn't expecting to finish 3rd, I wanted to win," he said from Sheffield where he plans to train for a week before proceeding to Barcelona to take part in a lower rung PSA meet.

Bhattacharya, now based out of Mumbai, meanwhile preaches patience when summing up his ward's juniors career. "I think he's done very well for someone who is 18. Yes, he wanted to win the British Juniors this time, but he's definitely a good potential for the future and he'll start doing well in the next couple of years," says the new guide, who's enthusiastic about shepherding the youngster. "His work ethic's unbelievable and he's really working very hard," he adds of the 18-year-old who made the semis at the Senior Men's Nationals.

The challenge for the big guy in the coming years will be how best to mould those god-given 180 cms and a commensurate wing-span to squash-worthiness. "He's a well-built guy and very strong and fit for his age, and we've not had an Indian player with that sort of a frame. But he's still not used his size and strength and power to his fullest potential and that will be the challenge in the seniors," says the former pro who reached No 38 in the world. "Playing at that level week in week out will be a task in itself," he says keen to set targets realistically for his charge whom he started working with a fortnight before the World Juniors.

Mangaonkar lost to an Egyptian in the semis and accepts that he was out-classed. "I started off fast and played well initially, sticking to my plan of keeping it straight, but then he started picking everything and hit some brilliant winners. I had a few chances from the mid-court at 8-8 in the third but I couldn't push for a win," he says sounding disappointed at the outcome against a junior who's already 77 on the PSA ranking charts and has two titles to his credit.

The enormity of the seniors circuit - and the top-grade squash - hits him straight away when he runs up against Frenchman Lucas Serme, who he beat in the final of the Prague Open (Mangaonkar's first PSA Challenger 5 title), in his first round at Barcelona next. He starts unseeded but is more wary of his opponent who will be thirsting for revenge a month after losing the Czech final. "It'll be a grudge match for him, but I need to keep in mind that I have to keep my record intact against him," he says, with the realisation dawning on him that as the curtains come down on his juniors career, the ascent will be necessarily steep.

Yet, here is one boy who can't be rid of the juniors days soon enough. "I learnt some things in juniors, but I can't wait to start out in the seniors. I'm happy I won't play the juniors anymore," he says, craving real competition now. His family has been supportive funding him to the tune of 25-30 lacs a year, but Mahesh Mangaonkar is keen that he starts winnng on the big stage and shoulders some of that burden.

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