Local learner set to participate in national tennis championships
The talented tennis player dreams of playing on TV one day.
Nathan Botha, a Grade Six learner at Christian Brothers’ College (CBC), has been selected to participate in the Tennis South Africa Junior National Championships in Bloemfontein from March 21 to 26.
The 11-year-old has been playing tennis since the age of five.
“I always watched tennis on TV with my dad and decided to play the sport,” Botha said.
His biggest inspiration is Rafael Nadal and his father, Marcel, who is also his coach.
Botha trains with his father’s tennis academy, M&S Tennis Academy, for two to four hours a day.
He plays for CBC Boksburg and was invited to participate in the High School Home Schooling Team for the Gata school matches.
“I also do a lot of Tennis South Africa tournaments. My ranking at the moment in South Africa is 51, and I am second in Gauteng for my age group,” he explained.
What are his goals?
“I want to get International Tennis Federation points to play overseas. Then I can hopefully get some Association of Tennis Professionals points and turn professional. That will take a lot of hard work and practice, but hopefully, I will play on TV one day.”
Marcel said he is extremely proud of his son’s achievements.
“It has been a long road with lots of fights. It is not always an easy combination, especially being a single dad. However, we always manage to get through everything.
We also keep our relationship on and off the court separate.”
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