The Sri Lanka Tennis Association recently commenced the Women’s Futures Tournament for which AVIC International Hotels Lanka Ltd. came forward as the main sponsors.
Zhang Bo who represented AVIC International Hotels Lanka Ltd. disclosed, “In collaborating with the SLTA, we are delighted to have provided our support as the Main Sponsors and to help in elevating the current stance of Women Tennis players in Sri Lanka. We believe that with this extended assistance we would be able to help in developing the future of this sport for them and give them more credibility to follow through with their passions for years to come.”
The event takes place in the form of three back to back tournaments at the SLTA via section courts from 30th September to 21st October, 2017. This entry level tournament takes place after the span of a number of years. A winning prize of USD $15,000 each was allocated for the tournaments.
The tournament matches are conducted on clay surfaces. A number of up and coming players from the region including leading Sri Lankan players such as Nethmie Waduge were set to take part. International players from countries such as India, France, Serbia, Cambodia, Chinese Taipei, China, Australia Indonesia, Sweden, Hungary, Canada and the United States to name a few have also come forward to take part in these tournaments.
Applications have also been forwarded from a host of different nations who have all vied to take part. Among those participating will be six players who have been ranked higher than 700 in the world as well as 3 other players who have been ranked in the 800s. The total cost for each tournament has been expected to reach Rs. 3.5 million each and The International Tennis Federation had already provided a grant to help cover part of these expenses with assistance from the Grand Slam Development Fund (GSDF).
The rest of the expenses are set to be covered through generous sponsorships from local partners and sponsors.