The hundreds of fans who will be flocking to the Wildey Gymnasium to see international lawn tennis stars Venus Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Gael Monfils and John Isner in action on December 11 could be getting even more than the promised 4X De Action.
In a Press briefing at the National Tennis Centre, Barbados Invitational Tennis Exhibition (BITE) director Kodi Lewis indicated that part of the evening’s programme would involve a road tennis clash between Monfils and a top local player.
That game will be staged between the women’s and men’s full matches of two sets.
Lewis stated that the recent exercise where the Professional Road Tennis Association (PRTA) held an exhibition match in London between Sylvan “Lama” Barnett and Andy Murray, which has so far gotten over 15 000 hits on Facebook and YouTube had created a situation where Monfils indicated that he wanted a shot at the indigenous Barbadian sport.
President of the PRTA, Dale Clarke, was extremely pleased with the request as he pointed out that in addition to Monfils facing an expected defeat at the hands of a local road tennis star, the exposure for road tennis would be supreme.
“Murray was disappointed with the loss in London and he has requested a rematch for 2012,” said Clarke.
“We are looking to embark on a world tour with the top eight local players to promote road tennis internationally and this exposure through Tennis Pon De Rock will assist in gaining sponsorship for that tour and road tennis,” added Clarke.
BITE director Richard Harrison explained that the road tennis event with Murray proved to be fortuitous as they had been looking at ways to involve road tennis in the Tennis Pon De Rock for some time.
Indications are that groups from St Vincent, St Lucia, Grenada and other Caribbean islands are booking to capture the live tennis action which will be shown on ESPN.
The action begins on Friday, December 9, when a party will be held at Limegrove.
The Sugar Hill Resort affair on December 10 will give top local players Haydn Lewis and Darian King the chance to further hone their skills in a doubles match against Monfils and Isner.
Tickets for the action-packed session in the Wildey Gym on December 11 are on sale at all SuperCentres and the Barbados Olympic Association or can be acquired online.
