US-bred tennis professionals, Shikha and Neha Uberoi, on a recent visit to Mumbai, hit the headlines as soon as they revealed plans of donning Indian colours on the tennis circuit

Their taut, whipcord frames in colourful kurtis stand out against the huge grey boulders, their nimble feet in high heels having safely navigated the uneven patch of seafront. Twenty-one-year-old Shikha, the elder by three years (ranked 158 in the world) is scheduled to play for India at the prestigious Federation Cup this year; Neha will follow suit in 2006. "This is a great time to play for the country. Like Leander (Paes) and Mahesh (Bhupathi) have done, we would like to carry the torch forward. Even though we live abroad, we have a lot more national pride and identity than many Indians here who blindly ape the West; so I willingly grabbed the chance to play for India," says Shikha, born in Mumbai's Breach Candy hospital. The duo is coached by Rick Macci, who also trains the Williams sisters.

The Florida-based Uberois' (that incidentally is the real spelling of their family surname) tangential claim to Indian fame is their blood relationship with Bollywood hero, Vivek Oberoi, their dads, Mahesh and Suresh being brothers. But, Shikha forcefully racqueted herself into the spotlight with her strong stroke play against Venus Williams at the US Open last year. "It was an exhilarating match," she recalls, as dad, Mahesh, proudly looks on. "No one really expected much from me but playing in the huge Arthur Ashe stadium and the loud cheering of the crowds spurred me on."

Both the sisters, who went to Princeton University, have taken a leave of absence to fuel their tennis careers. The younger Neha, who came into her own last year by winning the Luxilon Cup girls singles crown at Miami, will play the women's Nasdaq 100 Open 2005, becoming the first woman of Indian origin to qualify for a Tier 1 event on the WTA tour. "We share the same wavelength and wouldn't be anywhere without each other," she admits softly. "We naturally do play doubles events together but if pitted against each other in a singles match, we give as good as we get. It's our career and we do not want to mess about it. It is a hard road we have chosen and the company of a sibling is a boon."

Diehard professionals, the two are 'regular' girls at heart… and love relaxing to music, Hindi movies and favourite books, like most of their generation. Shikha shyly admits to having a larger than life poster of tennis ace, Roger Federer, in her room. And, of course, they've seen all of Vivek's films!