Tennis series back this weekend

The KIA Pro-Tennis Academy Series goes into the fourth round of competitions this coming weekend. As in previous rounds, Friday afternoon will see players of the Mini and Midi category battle it out on the court starting at 14:30. Saturday continues with Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced players as from 08:00 onwards.
Participating in this weekend’s tournament will be five players from the Pro-Tennis Academy who recently went on a tour of Spain. At the Madrid Open, the Namibians saw the world’s top players, including Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, Serena Williams and Sharapova compete on the controversial new blue clay courts for the first time in tennis history.
At the TenisVal Academy in Valencia, the Namibians learned about the work ethic and determination required to achieve their dreams. Here they were able to train with the coach of former World No1 Marat Safin and his sister Dinara. They also met David Ferrer and his coach, as well as Igor Andreev and other top players.
In Alicante the group spent seven hours per day training at the JC Ferrero Equelite Academy, improving their skills on and off the court. Here they trained next to Nicolas Almagro and former world No1 Juan Carlos Ferrero and some of the world’s top professional junior tennis players .
The five young athletes who participated in this tennis tour were Oliver Diggle, Tevin Tait, Katu Jacobs, Denise Murorua and Rhomee Beukes. With this influence to the tournament, spectators will be able to see a new level of gameplay in the competitions.
Competitors face each other in categories based on skill, disregarding gender and age, and are able to earn points at each tournament to advance in the overall ranking of the series. The amount of points awarded to players at each competition depend on the final position at the event as well as the category in which the player competes – more points in an advanced level and less if they enter as a beginner.
The current ranking still sees the unbeaten Michiel van Zyl on top of the podium, followed by Andre Smit with a 100 points difference. Oliver Diggle is the current bronze medalist, with Archie Norval and Codie van Schalkwyk on 4th and 5th position respectively.
Total prize money of N$20,000 will be awarded at the end of the year to the top three players per gender in the overall ranking, as well as to three players that showed the greatest improvement in the ranking and advancement in skill level throughout the year.