Talent scouts head for junior tournament

Talent scouts head for junior tournament

JAKARTA (JP): The Thamrin Cup Junior Tennis Championships this
year will reinstate the 18-year-old age group to scout talent for
important tournaments, an organizer said.

"The age of 18 is the right time to develop junior players.
The more competitions are held, the more juniors will have
chances to develop their skills," said Mangombar Ferdinand
Siregar of the Jakarta tennis association, the organizer of the
annual tournament.

The championships, to be staged at the Kemayoran Tennis Center
from June 8 to June 16, will be divided into five age groups: 10,
12, 14, 16 and 18. The last division was last contested in 1992.

The winners of each age group -- in both singles and doubles,
and boys and girls -- will qualify for the Sosro Cup
international tournament, scheduled right after the Thamrin Cup.
More than 100 players from 12 countries, mostly in Southeast
Asia, have confirmed their participation in the Sosro Cup.

About 100 tennis players from Jakarta, Aceh, West Java and
Central Java, have registered for the Thamrin Cup.

"We expect about 1,000 juniors to take part in the
championships, which will be staged during the school holidays,"
tournament director August Raturandang said.

Siregar said Indonesia's home defeats in the Davis Cup and Fed
Cup hurt national tennis.

The Davis Cup team lost to South Korea in February and to
China in March. The Fed Cup team was whipped by Belgium in April.

Siregar said Indonesian tennis players are excellent as
juniors but seem to lose their skill when they become seniors.

Siregar supported the Indonesian Tennis Association's idea of
holding a selection tournament to pick players to don the
national colors in international tournaments.

Rebel player Benny Wijaya, a former top player, said the
selection is a fair way to form the national team. He said,
however, that he would miss it due to club commitments.

Benny has extended his two-year contract with a Taiwanese club
for one more season.

"I'm sorry, but I have to return to Taiwan tomorrow," he said.

However, former Davis Cupper Benny expressed his hope that
someday he can rejoin the national team for international events.
Benny will play for Jakarta in the National Games here this
September. (yan)