After a long gap of 10 months, Nagpur District Hardcourt Tennis Association (NDHTA) is organising the first ever home tournament for Lawn Tennis here at its Ram Nagar-based MSLTA Tennis Academy courts on January 16 and 17.
The matches will be played in two categories — Under-12 and Under-14 — for boys and girls together on the clay courts. A total of 26 entries have been received in the U-12 category and 22 entries for the U-14 category.
Prafulla Shiwalkar, senior tennis player of the city, will be the chief guest for the inaugural function, while Ashok Bhiwapurkar, NDHTA vice-president, will be the guest of honour. Matches will be played from 9 am to 4 pm on both the days.
Tennis players and parents have been eagerly waiting for tournaments to begin as the COVID-19 pandemic had put an end to all the sports activities for the past year. The unique feature this time is that the tennis balls which will be used are the official Australian Open Dunlop make tennis balls, which are being used for the first time, courtesy MSLTA. Trophies will be given away to the winners and runners up and certificates will be given to all the participants.
For more details and registration, interested can contact Suraj (9975662996) and Vishal (9503653121).
Following are the tournament officials
Jai Kumar: tournament director
Vishal Landge: tournament supervisor
Suraj Giri: tournament coordinator
Navin More: tournament umpire.