Kids at the fore with champions on hand to usher in tennis festival in Dubai

Sport360 staff 11:28 18/02/2014
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  • Double trouble: Dubai doubles champions Cara Black (l) and Sania Mirza (r) were on hand to promote the kids festival.

    Over 700 school children from across the UAE took to the courts yesterday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium to mark the beginning of another exciting chapter of the premier tennis tournament.

    Children from 12 schools in the Emirate participated in the Kids’ Day which included a tennis clinic for all ages and skill levels, entertainment, the opportunity to meet top players, along with a chance to win prizes.

    Held under the watchful eyes of coaches from the Clark Francis Tennis Academy, the two-hour clinic gave kids a chance to interact with top WTA players, all while having fun and learning more about the sport.

    Clark Francis Tennis director Jon Guntley said “I thought the kids’ day went extremely well and ran very smoothly today. Many of the kids managed to play on the same court as the pros, and with some of the top juniors in the UAE.”

    Present at the occasion to give away prizes were WTA doubles players and Dubai champions Cara Black and Sania Mirza. Black was celebrating her 35th birthday yesterday and was delighted when the children sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to her on her arrival. Mirza, who won the doubles title last year with Bethanie Mattek- Sands, and Black, who took the doubles title three years running from 2007-2009 with Liezel Huber, enjoyed their interaction with the kids.

    “It’s great to be here and hopefully inspire these young people to take up tennis. Days like this are great for the game and I’m happy to be part of it,” said Mirza.

    Tournament director Salah Talak was pleased with the turn out.

    “The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships is not just for the elite players. It is great to see so many kids on the court, and having fun. We hope that this day inspires these children to take up tennis and hope to see them competing here someday," said Talak.

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