Nighttime tennis brings doubles at dusk

EVERYONE is invited to grab a racquet and take to the court at sundown as part of a returning weekly nighttime competition run by members of the Meredith Tennis Club.

Following on from its debut earlier this year, the six-week competition will server up from Wednesday 2 August and will run until mid-September.

Since its introduction in late April, club committee member Bridget Dyer said the community has been keen to see it back.

“We ran an autumn competition and had eight teams of doubles on a Thursday night for older kids that’ve been playing in the Buninyong Association, with their parents,” she said.

“On the Wednesday, we had younger kids between about nine and 14 playing with their parents. So, it’s like an easier comp and a harder comp in many ways.

“It was a great competition and so much fun. We’ve had people enquiring since because they want to play again.”

Cash prizes will be on offer with $150 going to the events’ top tennis teams.

Both days saw eight teams of doubles, and Ms Dyer said she’s wanting to see that number replicated.

The upcoming competitions will follow the same formats as the previous ones, with Wednesday and Thursday night events starting at 6pm each week.

Once the competition is underway, a position ladder will be regularly updated on the club’s Facebook page leading into the grand final for both events.

Ms Dyer said the competition has been about bringing a social family atmosphere to the community.

“It’s amazing,” she said. “We’ve had a grandmother playing with her grandson, we’ve had couples, mums, and dads who’ve never played before.

“There’s not a lot happening in Meredith so the reason for this is we wanted to really keep our junior teams going and developing them over winter but also get families a bit more involved.”

Registration will cost $30 per team and are open until Friday 28 July.

To sign up, message the Meredith Tennis Club’s Facebook page or email [email protected].