Paris Saint-Germain FC’s (PSG) and Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF) President Nasser bin Ghanim Al Khelaifi (left) gestures as he speaks to PSG’s manager Thomas Tuchel, while watching the ATP Qatar ExxonMobil Open tennis match between Stan Wawrinka of Switze
Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF) President Nasser bin Ghanim Al Khelaifi said yesterday that Qatar is eager to see its national team players appearing at the ATP Tour tournaments with official rankings taking them forward in the game.
Al Khelaifi also urged the young Qatari players to ‘train hard’.
On Tuesday, Qatar’s Mubarak Zayid lost to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain in straight sets though the 22-year-old impressed with his fast serves.
“I know today the young Qatari tennis players are second in the Gulf. They are going the right way,” Al Khelaifi said in an interview on the sidelines of the $1.4m Qatar ExxonMobil Open yesterday.
“I am being truthful and honest - our ambition is to get worldwide ranking for our players. Zayid is good and he can go forward,” Al Khelaifi added on day three of the hugely popular tournament that signed a new deal with title sponsors ExxonMobil.
“We have the capacity to go after our dream and this is our goal for the future. But of course, I am not suggesting we don’t want to only focus on how we do in the Gulf. But I want (to see) Qatari players in the top 500,” the QTF president said.
“I think we can do it. We have the facilities and the capacity to do it. We have a new coach. We are working in that direction as he will help us develop the young players. This is important for the federation and for our tennis as we go about developing the game,” he added.
In late October, legendary American tennis coach Nick Bollettieri camped in Doha on an invitation from the QTF to conduct training workshops.
The training workshops were attended by the players of Qatar’s national teams.
Bollettieri also visited the Qatari schools to hold similar workshops for the students. The program of the visit included theoretical and practical lectures and training sessions at the grassroots center at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, the venue of the on-going Qatar ExxonMobil Open.
The American, who oversaw the development of many leading players including Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, Monica Seles and Mary Pierce, during his visit in October also met with the parents of national team players to highlight the role of families in motivating the players and improving their tennis skills.
The visit in October was the result of the cooperation agreement between the QTF and the American coach to promote tennis in Qatar and ‘improve the skills of national team players’.
Al Khelaifi yesterday said young Qatari tennis players must do the ‘hard’ yards to move ahead in the rankings race.
“They need to learn the sports. They want to be there everyday. They need to train hard,” Al Khelaifi said yesterday.
“They need to do it for themselves. They need to be there with aims of learning new things,” Al Khelaifi said.
Al Khelaifi yesterday praised the organising committee of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open for their ‘tremendous effort’ to stage one of the more popular events on the ATP Tour circuit.
Alistair Routledge, General Manager of ExxonMobil, Qatar, yesterday said ATP Tour players ‘loved coming to Doha’ for the season’s first 250-point tournament. Qatar ExxonMobil Open was voted the “Best 250-point Tournament’ in 2016 and 2017.
“The efforts the teams put in to make this tournament successful is praise-worthy. I mean that’s what strikes us when we look at this country also,” Routledge said after he inked a three-year extension on ExonMobil’s title sponsorship of the tournament in Doha.
“This country welcomes the world and shares its customs and values. I think that’s what the players enjoy - they feel safe, they are extremely well treated. I think it’s a great combination and the players really appreciate that,” he added.
