Barrett’s team plays in Tunisia
Rynfield resident and tennis legend Helen Barrett has been using her years of experience on the court to foster and develop the future stars of South African tennis.
Barrett coached and captained the South African u-14 girls’ team at the recent 2017 African Junior Team Championships and International Tennis Federation (ITF) and Confederation of African Tennis (CAT) Junior Circuit Tournament in Tunisia.
A boys’ and girls’ u-16 team also flew the flag for the country.
The African Junior Team Championships proved to be a tough learning experience for the junior national teams as they struggled to get to grips with playing on clay – a surface unfamiliar to most South Africans.
Barrett’s u-14 girls (Gabriella Broadfoot, Christine Kruger and Naledi Manube) finished in third place, agonisingly close to the top two positions, which would have given them qualification to the ITF World Junior Team Championships.
The u-16 boys experienced the same fate while the u-16 girls’ team ended in the fourth position in their age group.
Barrett’s young players of Gabriella Broadfoot (Gauteng North) and Christine Kruger (Free State) claimed the doubles title in the CAT tournament while Broadfoot also finished as runner-up in the girls’ u-14 singles.
Barrett has, in the past, represented South Africa at prestigious tournaments like Wimbledon and the French Open.
The coach, who plies her trade at the Serengeti Curro Serengeti Academy tennis courts, hoped to pass on her wisdom from playing on the clay courts of Roland-Garros to the young players.
“Playing on clay surfaces was a whole new learning experience for the players,” she said.
“I am proud of their efforts.”
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