A top junior tennis player in India, Altaf Merchant represented India in the tennis Orange Bowl. Altaf also earned national and Masters tennis championships in India. He played collegiate tennis for SIU at Carbondale.

As he transitioned into pickleball, Altaf has been dominant with a 59-0 season in 2023 as a senior pro, 3 US OPEN gold medals, and being crowned national champion twice.

Off the court, Merchant is Senior Vice President of investments at UBS and was named on Forbes' list of best financial advisors.