CLTA to serve Commonwealth cause

Chandigarh, Fourteen aspiring tennis players from across the Commonwealth will spend the next five years working on improving their game at the Chandigarh Lawn Tennis Association (CLTA).

Two young players each from Bangladesh, Brunei, Maldives, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore and Sri Lanka will receive coaching at the CLTA courts and also do their schooling here.

Six of them - Maria Raidha, (Maldives), Tausif Amin Khan (Bangladesh), Aiman Mohammed (Brunei), Harsha de Silva (Sri Lanka), Zian Abdul Rashid (Maldives) and Madushani Rajendra (Sri Lanka) - are already here and have started attending St Stephen's School, Sector 45. The rest will arrive over the year.

"The facilities we have here are very good and it was felt that players from outside India should be given a chance to avail of them," said Wing Commander Surjit Singh (retd), general manager, CLTA. The boarding, lodging and training expenses of the players are being taken care of by the Commonwealth Youth Programme Asia Centre (CYPAC) and the CLTA, he said.

The programme was originally suggested by the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Donald C McKinnon. It was taken forward by RK Mishra, Regional Director, CYPAC, Chandigarh and Rajan Kashyap, chairman, CLTA.

CLTA Director Coaching Gajendra Singh, sees great potential in the players who have arrived so far. He also sees this as a good experience for players here.

"It will be good exposure for players from Chandigarh to interact with these youngsters. And seeing how serious they are about their tennis should also be a motivating factor for the local players," he said.

While the players have an initial contract of five years, this can be extended further if they so desire. "We wanted to implement this programme on a long term basis. Just having them here for a year or so would not have served the purpose," he added.

For the young players, it is a godsend. Aishath Adam, the mother of 13-year-old Zian, who was the under-12 champion in Maldives, said, "Zian is very serious about tennis. But the facilities in Maldives are so poor that he had almost stopped playing."

Her 19-year-old daughter, Zeina, had also given up playing tennis, she said. "Thank god, at least my son has got this opportunity."

The parents of Madushani, Sri Lanka's under-13 No 2 are equally happy. "The conditions in our country are just not conducive for proper training. There is only one facility for tennis in Batticaloa, where we live. Sometimes, going for practice there can be very dangerous, "said her father.

Brunei's Aiman, meanwhile, already sees the improvement in his game. "My footwork is better. And I am more consistent now. "And while he may miss his family, he knows that being here is something he has to do for his future.

Source: Express India