Two promising young Tauranga tennis players have qualified to play centre-court at January's ASB Classic as part of a youth-focused tournament.
Charlize Cashmore, age 11, and Cullen Mccashin, age 13, will compete in a new junior tennis tournament called ‘The Road to the ASB Classic' by Jaguar and Lavie Tennis Academy that gives promising talent the opportunity to shine at New Zealand's biggest tennis tournament and win the inaugural Jaguar Cup.
The tournament offers a series of regional draws for tennis players under the age of 14 to compete for a place in the 32-player main pool, which will be played on the courts at ASB Classic in January 2023 – giving young tennis stars the experience of what it takes to compete at the top.
The initiative is designed to improve the breadth and depth of tennis talent – it's been more than a century since NZ had a tennis player in the top 10 world ranking, with the closest player, Chris Lewis, reaching #19 almost three decades ago.
Charlize and Cullen – who train at Papamoa Tennis Club – secured their places early this month to play at the ASB Classic, with the opportunity seeing them train and compete in Auckland from January 11-14.
Lavie Tennis Academy owner/founder Sebastian Lavie says the tournament aims to inspire young players from clubs around NZ and is looking forward to seeing how the Tauranga kids perform in front of crowds in January.
'We're delighted to give these future tennis stars an incredible opportunity to perform at ASB Classic. The Bay of Plenty players have competed well so far, with some exciting matches and great talent.
'It's going to be an exciting time to see the best young talent from around the country compete surrounded by big crowds and some of the world's best tennis players.”
Each of the 32 kids selected will compete in four matches during ASB Classic, with hundreds of spectators able to watch, culminating in live finals on Centre Court ahead of the ASB Classic Men's Final on Saturday, January 14.
More tournament details can be found at: https://lavietennisacademy.com/