T&T will be represented at the upcoming prestigious Davis Cup Qualifiers and JITIC Under-14 boys and girls competitions.
This as the Tennis Association of T&T (TATT) continues its effort to move forward with its strategic steps to tennis excellence, players development and performance.
The JITIC Girls and Boys U-14 Championships will take place in Guatemala from June 25 to July 1 followed by the Copa Mundo Maya from July 3-8 also in Guatemala.
Among the senior men and women, the Billy Jean King Cup which was carded for Bolivia has already been postponed while the Davis Cup competition is set for Panama from June 28 to July 3.
Recently, TATT successfully lobbied and secured additional spaces for T&T's U-14 athletes in these competitions, hence creating more opportunities for the junior national players to succeed.
Though faced with the local climate of lockdown and restrictions due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, TATT was able to enter into discussions with the Ministry of Health and received an exemption for its national junior players to train locally. This was necessary to ensure that the top juniors are ready for the following upcoming Regional tournaments:
T&T presently has the top-ranked U-14 girls' player in the Caribbean and Central American region (COTECC) in Cameron Wong and a total of three players in the regional top ten with Jada-Lee Daniel-Joseph and Jordane Dookie, the two other players.
The local association also have two players that are ranked in the boys U-14 top ten in Zachery Byng and Kale Dalla Costa.
According to TATT, it is noteworthy that when T&T's junior players are afforded the opportunity to compete in tournaments, it contributes significantly to their skill level and rankings. Once matches are won, players receive points that improve their National, COTECC and ITF rankings.
Additionally, based on these ranking, the top four players are invited to the ITF/COTECC touring team and the Junior Masters event.
On the contrary, if tournaments are not engaged in regularly, points previously gained could be quickly eroded and other opportunities denied.
TATT is also finalising arrangements for representation at upcoming senior tournaments and thanked its stakeholders including the Sport Company of T&T (SporTT), the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Sports and Community Development for their continued support in the development of national athletes.