Dubai: The UAE tennis season will officially get under way this Friday with governing body Tennis Emirates hosting the opening round of the Future Pro Talent Series at Kings School, Al Barsha.
The competition will be held in the under-12 and under-14 categories at the four courts that serve as the main performance centre for Future Pro players.
Organisers have already received 90 entries for both age categories of the series that is part of the six-round UAE Rankings held through the season.
Last year, the Future Pro Talent Series consisted of five rounds while an extra round has been added this season.
The Talent Series also has competitions for under-16, under-18, men and women that will be worked out over the next few weekends.
Only men and women will get cash prizes, while winners from the junior categories will be awarded gift vouchers.
In addition, there is the Future Pro Development Series for under-8, under-9 and under-10 age categories along with the Future Pro Amateur Series that is restricted to recreational players from across the UAE.
With Laith Al Ani as the tournament director, TE will also be hosting the annual UAE League for junior boys under-12, under-16 boys and girls and for men. “The idea behind the entire exercise of supporting a calendar for tennis tournament is to explore avenues for tapping talent, be it Emirati kids or the expatriates,” Rahul Tulpule, CEO and Founder of Pro Sports told Gulf News.
“In addition, we are in the process of once again exploring possibilities at the Shaikh Rashid School for Boys in the Nad Al Sheba area while trying to see if we can invoke a response from all age group players there,” he added.
“In the longer run, we would move in and see what the International Tennis Federation (ITF) can do to assist through Tennis Emirates so that the grassroots levels can be taken care of through these various tennis developmental programmes,” Tulpule insisted.
