THE EDITOR: Mirror, mirror on the wall, is tennis going anywhere at all?
The start of 2024 saw tennis beginning with a bang but on the wrong foot. The popular inter-club competition heads the list. With the manner in which clubs assembled their teams, a more fitting designation should be inter-team, for most players do not belong to the club they played for.
The second issue is how arbitrarily players are classified to meet the team criteria. The faulty arrangement lies at the feet of the tennis administrators who are not operating at ground level. Their agenda seems remotely related to the mandate of the sport.
After decades of hosting classified tournaments there is still no official grouping besides juniors, seniors and veterans, and male and female. An official committee, taking the bull by the horns, can regularise the A, B and C groupings that all organisers of classified tournaments must adhere to.
There is no classification or activity for males to play females singles matches.
This year cannot be business as usual with Tennis TT. Stakeholders are yet to see a five-year strategic plan to recoup tennis. Being an election year for Tennis TT, potential presidents should be drifting in that direction and exterminate the two-year syndrome.
Unfinished business brought forward to 2024 are lifting the Davis Cup team out of the cellar position; more inclusion of the ladies' tennis and rebirth of a team for the Billie Jean Cup; and unfreezing the poor performances of our junior representatives against the likes of the US, Canada and Mexico.
Of major concern to the tennis fraternity is the pursued certification of the National Racquet Centre as an ITF (International Tennis Federation) training centre. Is this centre in the plans of the Government, or Sportt for that matter? Or is the present administration of the tennis body just dreaming? Let's hope that the tail is not wagging the dog.
If the tennis centre should materialise, answers are needed for the following questions:
* What is going to be the input of the ITF (hopefully not only a few tables, chairs and a camera).
* Would players below national status have access to the facility? (They already cannot use the facility.)
* What personnel is needed to manage the centre?
* Who is going to pay the additional personnel employed by the centre?
* What benefits will accrue to TT for sharing its prized tennis facility?
* Would the cash benefits redound to the impoverished tennis fraternity?
* How long has this plan been on the drawing board?
* What is the current status of the plan?
* Would world class coaches be attached to the centre or local Trinis have to fight their way through the maize to get to the world stage?
Let's keep it simple, Tennis TT, and be guided by the National Sport Policy 2017-2027 and:
* Meet the tennis mandate
* Revive the club system
* Enable the environment
* Assemble an experienced, competent and committed administrative team
The sport has been to better heights and recovery will come with great
