Carmel High School to permanently honor homegrown tennis champ Rajeev Ram

CARMEL, Ind. (WISH) — Soon, when young tennis prospects in Carmel swap volleys and slug groundstrokes, they’ll do it with a reminder of the possibilities of their sport truly underfoot.

Carmel High School’s vaunted tennis program is renaming the team’s main court after the most successful Greyhound.

Rajeev Ram won two state singles titles at CHS and graduated in 2002. Since then, he has become one of the most decorated doubles players in tennis history. He won a silver medal in mixed doubles alongside Venus Williams at the 2016 Olympics.

Then, in a three-season run starting in 2020, he won three titles at the U.S. Open and three more in the Australian Open. He then added another Olympic silver in 2024, with Austin Krajicek.

Off the court, Ram’s foundation focuses on fostering the positive impacts of the game on young people in Indiana.

Now, Ram’s alma mater plans to celebrate those successes on a permanent basis.

The featured court at the Todd Witsken Tennis Center will become “Rajeev Ram Court” sometime in September.

The formal announcement of the change explains the move from the perspective of administrators: “Carmel Clay Schools has always been focused on creating lifelong learners that make an impact on the world with their positive attitude and giving back to the community. There are times when an individual takes that mission to the fullest extent and leaves a legacy for generations to follow. Rajeev Ram is a Class of 2002 graduate of CHS and embodies the pursuit of excellence our city and school district embraces.”

Ram has, so far, addressed the honor with his customary quiet humility. In an X post, he writes simply, “Honored.. thank you very much.”

When News 8 talked to Ram after his first Grand Slam title in 2020, he spoke of the importance of inspiring younger players.

“I know how much I was inspired by the people that played before me, and if kids, especially kids from Indiana, can see that you can be local, you can be homegrown and you can still have a decent career in professional tennis and college tennis, whatever it is…If anything I can do help that, it would be so awesome to see more kids pick up the game.”

The new honor will also bring another Greyhound back into the spotlight.

The facility where the Greyhounds play is named for another CHS alum who was also a successful pro. 1982 graduate Todd Witsken was a top 50 singles player and a top 5 doubles player. Brain cancer cut his life tragically short at 34 years old, but his legacy still serves as an inspiration for players across Indiana.

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