Durban teen part of SA trio jetting off to the French Open for junior tennis tournament

Fifteen-year-old Simphiwe Ngwenya is one of three young tennis talents, along with Heike Janse van Vuuren and Devin Badernhorst, that have been selected to represent SA in France.

Simphiwe Ngwenya, 15, from Cato Crest in Durban will participates at the international BNP Paribas Young Talent activation at the French Open in Paris on Saturday. Picture: Tennis SA Facebook page

Published May 26, 2022

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DURBAN - A Durban teen will get a chance to be in the same city with tennis legends such as Novac Djokovic and Rafael Nadal when he participates in a major junior tennis tournament this weekend.

Simphiwe Ngwenya who hails from Cato Crest township in Durban will fly the South African flag when he participates at the international BNP Paribas Young Talent activation at the French Open in Paris on Saturday, May 28.

The fifteen-year-old is one of three young tennis talents, along with Heike Janse van Vuuren and Devin Badernhorst, that have been selected to represent South Africa in France.

Ngwenya honed his talent in the BNP Paribas RCS Rising Star Tennis Programme when he took up the sport in 2016, and emerged as one of the outstanding performers in the second edition of the competition in 202. According to Kieran Fahy, the CEO BNP Paribas South Africa CIB the trip is part of an effort to develop the sport in the country.

“This trip is indicative of our mission to nurture tennis through our nation-wide school’s tennis tournament. It’s especially rewarding for us to see young players grow throughout the journey of the competition and represent their country on a global stage to showcase the wealth and diversity of sporting talent in South Africa,” said the CEO.

The life-changing trip to Paris for the trio of junior stars has been made possible by BNP Paribas as part of the BNP Paribas RCS Rising Star Tennis initiative which aims to grow tennis through grassroots development.

South Africa has over the past years produced a number of high-ranking tennis players like Wayne Ferreira, Amanda Coetzer, Kevin Anderson and Lloyd Harris.

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