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Nkosilathi Sibanda, [email protected]

MORE than 60 tennis players will this week take part at the Emakhandeni Tennis Club invitational tournament at Bulawayo Athletics Club (BAC) courts.

The tournament, which is one of the first  major competitive tennis events this year in the city, is on from tomorrow to Sunday.

Initially, the contest was scheduled for February 16 and owing to logistical challenges  at the time, organisers chose to postpone in order to make sure that all was in place.

The tournament’s lead organiser, Witness Jiyane, who is also the Emakhandeni  Tennis Club director, said all was in place this time around.

“Having  postponed the tournament last month, we are at a position where we are confident to announce that the Emakhandeni Tennis Invitational tournament will be held this week, starting from Friday to Sunday.

“This is a tournament for junior players between the ages of 10 to 18 and as mentioned earlier in February, we are expecting more than 60 players.

The number could increase as we had extended the dates. So far so good in terms of preparations. We await to have a good competitive tournament,” said Jiyane.

He said in this year’s edition they have made good strides in securing sponsorship from Select Health Care and Miravana Transport, adding on that, more partners will come on board in a bid to promote junior tennis development.
Participants,  according to Jiyane, will be presented with an opportunity to rub off the rust, following a lengthy break from last year.

“Tennis action begins now, and we call upon all players who are eligible to take part at the Emakhandeni Tennis Invitational, to make good use of the platform presented to them. It is more than a competition,” said Jiyane in an interview with Zimpapers Sports Hub.

He said in the tournament, players that have registered and confirmed participation were from all the country’s 10 provinces.

“It’s  going to be a great show of tennis this week. The good thing is, we will have players from all over the country. In a first, we will be having players coming from Highfields, Gwanda and Mufakose. We are also anticipating a huge turnout from Bulawayo, in particular players from schools such as Charleston Trust, Northlea High, Emakhandeni Primary, Josiah Chinamano, Girls College, Whitestone Primary and others.

“If it wasn’t for the belief and support from our partners and sponsors, we would not have achieved what we have done in the preparation stages.

We are indebted to our sponsors Select Health and  Miravana Transport. In our last tournament in December, the core sponsors were PPC, Miravana Logistics and Chicken Inn. I would like to thank our previous sponsors for their continued support,” said Jiyane.

He said it is in their plans as Emakhandeni  Tennis Club to organise a tournament every month.

“Our aim is to have at least one tournament every month, so that we keep players  match fit and prepare them for national tournaments in April,” he said.

Emakhandeni Tennis Club tournaments have been attended by players, with some of them who have since won  scholarships ,with aims to turn professional soon.

These players have represented the country in regional and continental outings and they include Africa’s number one ranked Under-14 Kuzivaishe Chapepa and her sister Kudazi, Shain Tapera,  Emmly Geerge, Akeelah Khanye, Zamani Moyo, Courage Ndlovu, Isaac Nyoni and Munashe Bera.
Tapera and Moyo are in the United States of  America (USA) on a scholarship.

Jiyane, who is also a top coach and administrator, is of the view that the growth of tennis in the country hinged on the successful implementation of player  development and sound internal funding.

While acknowledging how sponsors have come to the aid of the sport, Jiyane said it was time to find other means of funding.

“As we forge forward, there’s no denying that the sport is in need of sponsors. We applaud those who chip in here and there,  but more needs to be done. Hosting such tournaments comes at a heavy cost. Parents toil to have their kids participate. We have these kids who come from less privileged families. I hereby appeal to the corporate world to assist and cover some of their expenses during the tournament, which includes food and accommodation,” said Jiyane. -@NkosieLegend