Tennis centre attracts stars

By Gavin Staindl
LESS than a year since its opening, the Pakenham Tennis Centre has quickly become one of Victoria’s pinnacle tennis venues.
Last month, the venue hosted the first State Junior Hardcourt Championships where an exclusive list of juniors were accepted to compete in the four-day event.
Only 16 juniors were accepted into each age group that ranged from under-12 to under-18.
Because of the limited number of contestants, the round robin enticed the state’s highest ranked juniors to attend the event that offered high quality matches.
On a week where the locals struggled, Doveton representative Noelleda Ah San stood out, winning the under-14 girls division.
Despite the poor showing by the locals, the venue’s operations manager Melony Grand-Court said the competition would increase interest in the venue.
The centre is also gearing itself for another big week in a fortnight when the junior Australian Open qualifications come to Pakenham.
Tennis Victoria believes the courts at Pakenham are ideal for the qualifications because of its modern facilities and similarities with the court surface used at the Australia Open.
Tennis Victoria Junior Tournament manager Jason Simmons said the courts at Pakenham have become an attractive option for future events.
“It is a great centre and a way of supporting regional tennis,” Simmons said.
“There are lots of courts, good set-up, good staff and it is an ideal lead-in to have a venue with a surface very similar to that of the Australian Open,” he said.