Bryanston Sports Club host a smashing tennis weekend

The best South African girls and women’s tennis players descended on Bryanston Sports Club for a weekend of smashing tennis at the Wiphold Next Gen Camp and Tournament.

The event from 28 June until 1 July was organised by the captain of the Fed Cup team, René Plant.

She brought some Fed Cup players with her, who, along with top SA players and players with college scholarships in the United States, shared their knowledge and a few games with SA’s best girl players.

There were training sessions on the court and discussions off the court about creating pathways to playing college tennis in the US or getting onto the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.

A tournament was also held throughout the weekend, with Ilze Hattingh beating Theresa van Zyl in the final. Both play for colleges in America.

“The event was a great success and the college players added value to it,” said Plant.

She added that currently, the end goal for most girls and women’s players in SA was to play at a college in the States.

However, Plant wants to raise the bar and get South African women’s players to WTA events, and there are a few steps to getting there.

Lulu Ntuli, who will represent South Africa at the Fed Cup in Montenegro in 2020, said, “Women’s tennis is often looked over in South Africa but now we can see it getting back on track.”

Her Fed Cup teammate, Minette van Vreden, agreed that the weekend was a blast.

“We are doing a lot of match practice and fitness which will help ahead of the Fed Cup,” she said.

“It has also been good learning from other players’ game plans.”

Also read:

https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/196304/st-marys-schoool-waverley-tennis-coach-asked-to-captain-south-africa/