AUSTRALIA\u2019S summer of tennis will kick off locally this January with two tournaments set for the Bendigo Tennis Centre.<\/p>\n
The Bendigo Tennis Association recently announced it will host the ATP Challenger 80 and ITF Women\u2019s 60 from 2 to 9 January.<\/p>\n
Executive officer of BTA James Rouel said the event will be the biggest tournament in Bendigo since the 2020 Canberra International, which was relocated with short notice.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very exciting and it\u2019s amazing for Bendigo, it\u2019s going to be an international tournament right in our backyard,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, we had no events last year due to COVID, but the year before we were given the Canberra one at very short notice due to the bushfires, which proved to Tennis Australia and the higher body that we\u2019re up to the challenge and we can definitely hold major events.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a result, they\u2019ve rewarded us this year with an even bigger event, and we\u2019re going to get some fantastic players right here in Bendigo.\u201d<\/p>\n
The tournaments will see some of the world\u2019s top talents compete for up to $155,000 in prize money in the lead up to the Australian Open.<\/p>\n
Mr Rouel said more people are playing tennis now than ever before, with over 800 players at the centre each week, and this event will entertain all tennis fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cSummer\u2019s obviously our peak season, we\u2019re very lucky we\u2019ve got competitions and everything running again at the moment, which is fantastic after a very quiet winter,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cTennis numbers are up due to COVID overall across Australia, people are finding it a great alternative as it\u2019s socially distanced.<\/p>\n
\u201cNumbers are up and events like these just keep people interested and involved in the sport, it\u2019s the best advertising for tennis in Bendigo.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a way COVID\u2019s been kind of good for tennis, it\u2019s been a good chance to reset and find out what we can do to grow again, and we\u2019re heading in the right direction.\u201d<\/p>\n
He expects thousands of spectators to flock to the Bendigo Regional Tennis Centre for the tournament.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had 8000 through in four days\u2019 notice with the Canberra International, with a good month notice we\u2019re hoping to get more than that through and throw on something really special for Bendigo,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
AUSTRALIA\u2019S summer of tennis will kick off locally this January with two tournaments set for the Bendigo Tennis Centre. The Bendigo Tennis Association recently announced it will host the ATP Challenger 80 and ITF Women\u2019s 60 from 2 to 9 January. Executive officer of BTA James Rouel said the event will be the biggest tournament […]<\/p>\n