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Nkosilathi Sibanda, Sports Reporter

TENNIS Zimbabwe (TZ) president Walter Jera has appealed for financial support in the sport to boost players representing the country in international tournaments.

Jera’s call comes in the wake of an outcry by parents of children participating in the sport, who have for long bemoaned the lack of financial assistance whenever players are going to competitions.

TZ confirmed that they were running under a tight budget and were finding it hard to sustain some of the planned projects for growing the sport.

A case in point is the recent success of junior players, who have gone all miles to raise the country’s flag high in regional and continental tournaments.

The Under-14 boys’ and girls’ teams did the country proud at the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) Southern African Junior Individual and Teams Championships.

The girls, Kuzivaishe Chapepa, Akeelah Khanye, Emmly George, Mufaro Ruwanza and Rutendo Tom won a gold medal. The boys, Courage Ndlovu, Muchengeti Manzungu, Noah Samshonga and Anotipa Chigudu also had a good showing.

Jera told Zimpapers Sports Hub:

“Tennis has no funding in Zimbabwe. Players are self-funded and this is a toil to parents who are then forced to fork out their hard-earned money so that their children can compete and fulfil their dreams.

There’s a need for a concerted effort from Government and other stakeholders to come on board,” said Jera. -@NkosieLegend

But, as the campaign to lure funders continues, Jera maintained that they were not deterred in their endeavour to take the game of tennis to all corners of the country.
“As a national association, our focus is inclusivity. More often, your best talent comes from those without means. We need to capacitate this underprivileged lot, through national development programmes,” he said.
Jera touched on the issue of home schooling which has helped players balance sport and education.
“Home schooling is a developing phenomenon, gaining momentum in the last five plus years, locally. It has been buoyed by affluent parents, with the means to support their kids with a passion for distinguished sports. In Africa and elsewhere, your education level is still contributory to your success. TZ remains focused on the underprivileged.”