Sanjana Sirimalla, Pari Singh in WTA Future Stars tennis in China

Sanjana Sirimalla and Pari Singh will represent the country in the WTA Future Stars tennis event to be played in Shenzhen, China, from October 22 to 27.

The two girls have been accompanied by coach Radhika Tulpule Kanitkar.

Sanjana has been placed in a seven member group in the under-16 event. Both the age groups have 27 players from 20-odd countries. There will be many Chinese players in the new format, aimed to provide a better thrust for the juniors. The toppers from each of the four groups will make the semifinals.

Pari Singh is also in a seven-player group in the under-14 section.

The event is a prelude to the WTA Finals featuring the top stars of the season. The final of the junior event will be played on the centre court of the Shehzhen Bay Sports Centre on Sunday.

There will also be mentoring sessions for the girls from renowned stars of the sport like Judy Murray, Alicia Molik and Zheng Jie.

There will be an added attraction for the under-14 champion, as there would be a direct entry to the girl in the Les Petits tournament in Tarbes, France.

The WTA Future Stars event, held for the last five years in Singapore, has now expanded to countries like Canada, Britain and the US, from its original focus of the Asia-Pacific zone.

(Courtesy: The Hindu)