GUANGZHOU - He settled for a silver medal in men's singles tennis at the Asian Games, but Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan is still pursuing his goal of reaching the top 10 in the world - maybe even No 1.
"Of course I still hope to be ranked in the world's top 10," said the 24-year-old Istomin. "I've worked hard and I will try to do my best."
In the men's singles final on Tuesday, Istomin lost to Somdev Devvarman of India 6-1, 6-2 in 82 minutes.
Devvarman, who also won gold in men's doubles with compatriot Sanam Krishan Singh, was aggressive in the first set and withstood a stern challenge from Istomin in the second to seal the victory.
The Indian fired five aces and broke Istomin's serve four times in the opening set and three times in the second.
"He played very well. I couldn't concentrate on the match and I missed a lot of balls," said Istomin, who was the top seed entering the competition.
"I couldn't find my good serves. I just needed some luck, but it wasn't a good day for me today."
Istomin also helped Uzbekistan win silver in the men's team event.
"I did my best. I won team silver and singles silver. It's good for me. Maybe gold is better, but I did my best," he said.
Istomin started playing tennis at the age of five, coached by his mother, Klaudiya. In recent years he's made great progress as a professional player.
At last year's US Open, he became the first player from Uzbekistan to reach the third round of a Grand Slam.
Ranked No 56 in the world at the end of 2009, he's continued his good form this year, winning three three-set matches en route to his first ATP tournament final in New Haven, Connecticut.
Though he lost the final, he rose to world No 39 in August to become the first player from his country to crack the world's top 50.
"I have many tournaments next season, so I hope to make my ranking go up," he said.
Asian Games exhibition held in Beijing
