The Curro Centre Court Series in partnership with Tennis South Africa (TSA) will host its next event in Stellenbosch from Sunday to 15.
The event will be separated into men’s 15 (M15) and women’s 15 (W15) categories.
Each category boasts prize money of $15 000 per week (R272,00), an overall pool of $60 000 (R1,08 million).
As the tournaments form part of the men’s and women’s ITF tour, the series allows some of the world’s rising stars to improve their rankings through earning points for their performances.
Big opportunity
“There is a healthy number of South African men and women playing in these tournaments, many based overseas, who relish the opportunity to return home and compete against world competition,” says Cindy van der Merwe, Portfolio Manager at Curro Sport.
“And these tournaments once again highlight Curro’s dedication and commitment in providing the platform and opportunity for quality tennis to be played and enjoyed right here in South Africa,” she adds.
Indeed, the South African contingent is strong, led by South African Davis Cup team players Alec Beckley, Leo Matthysen and Phillip Henning, winner of week one of the series in Hillcrest.
Adding some spice to the men’s draw is Leo Borg, son of Swedish tennis legend and five-time Wimbledon winner, Bjorn Borg.
Top-ranked local junior player, teenager Connor Doig from Westville who is sitting at 112 in the world and a winner of the ITF junior event also at Curro Hillcrest in September, will want to impress.
Kris van Wyk, South Africa’s top-ranked player and a losing finalist in week three at Curro Centre Court Series in Hillcrest, will want to improve on that performance and take home the winner’s cheque as one of the evergreens on the ITF circuit.
In the women’s draw, South Africa’s hope will be pinned on Isabella Kruger and teenager Jahnie van Zyl, a top junior player. Kruger, daughter of the late Springbok rugby legend Ruben, had an up and down performance at Curro Hillcrest, winning the second week’s women’s title but falling early in the other two weeks.
Van Zyl, a gritty player who fights to the bitter end, was a crowd favourite in Hillcrest and could not quite reach the final, despite progressing deep into the draw, including a win over Kruger in week one. Van Zyl is definitely a youngster to watch as she has performed admirably at numerous international tournaments and was selected for the prestigious Grand Slam Player Development Programme in 2023.
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