Turkey invites Pakistan for junior tennis camp

PTF asked to shortlist 20 players for two-month long training camp.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) has been approached by the Turkish Tennis Federation (TTF) to hold joint training sessions in Ankara where 20 junior players from Pakistan will be trained along with their Turkish counterparts.

The training camp is due to be held in August and will last for two months.

According to the PTF Vice-President Irshad Bhatti, the federation has been in talks with their Turkish counterparts and was initially hoping to send senior players to the International Tennis Federation events in Turkey. However, that plan got cancelled as the seniors decided to visit India instead.

Therefore, the TTF proposed to host a juniors’ camp in Ankara with 20 local players and  20 others from Pakistan.

PTF organises talent-hunt programme

Bhatti explained that the juniors will be chosen from the PTF Super League matches that will be played in seven different cities of Pakistan. The league – which will begin from May 8 – will be played in cities like Sargodha, Mianwali, Faisalabad, Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Islamabad.

“We often hear criticism that there aren’t many good tennis players in Pakistan,” Bhatti told The Express Tribune. “In order to prove these people wrong, the PTF has launched the talent-hunt programme in which we hope to come across some extremely talented players and their ultimate prize will be a trip to Turkey.”

According to Bhatti, the initiative will help find a pool of players who can represent Pakistan in the Davis Cup and other international tournaments. He added that the 20 players who perform well in the Super League will be groomed in different countries as part of the four-year plan.

Meanwhile, Bhatti also confirmed that the federation aims at making this training camp in Turkey a regular feature in order to uplift the sport in Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1^st, 2011.