Jithmie's plight

Srian OBEYESEKERE

'Money, money, money in a rich man's sport! Yes, money might be the reason to drive Sri Lanka's international tennis champion Jithmie Jayawickrema out of the sport just because she find's its too rich a sport to cope with. Jithmie had gone professional on the ITF junior circuit last year, but the spiralling cost to stay there is a weighing down factor.

As she puts it, it is challenging and exciting playing in the professional junior circuit starting from Asian level. Even if a player reaches two rounds he or she is paid.

But to play in that circuit is tough. "You need about US $ 2000 a month to survive, air fare, accommodation, coache's fees, entry fees - US $ 60 - on top of having to obtain qualifying points to survive in a country like Thailand," laments the starry eyed local queen of tennis in dispair that she has all what is required to get there as a player, but that the world that beckons her is out of her reach because tennis players are not helped out by sponsors.

Big money

"Tennis is a sport where you need huge money for training and playing abroad and I might just have to drop out because I can't depend all the time on my parents money to sustain me right along," says Jithmie the 309th ITF world ranking player - the highest ever by a Sri Lankan woman, - who while being buoyed that she has done all the hard work to make it to Junior ITF tennis, in the same breath melts in the gloom that her career is good as over because she does not have the big money that it takes to sustain her tennis career.

Unless of course, Jithmie finds a benevolent sponsor firm smile down on her.

But there too, she is pessimistic for the simple reason that 'sponsors don't come in for tennis unlike in cricket or athletics. I just don't know why but we tennis players are never helped by big time sponsors except for our racquets.'

She has put behind the hardships and obstacles by becoming runner-up in the ITR tournament singles in Sri Lanka and runner-up in the doubles event and reached the semi finals of the singles of the ITR tourney in Brunei and in the Group-III Tournament in Bangladesh in January where she went up to the quarters in the singles and doubles against top level opposition.

Jitmie's tennis racquets are sponsored by an Indian firm, and that too was a possibility only because `I and my family were able to meet the company's Indian agent during a visit here.'

One of the biggest problems Jithmie, who has been national champion for several years running, faces is having to hire a foreign coach.

"It's a long way. To play in the senior circuit in Asian tournaments I need to get a coach from that region," she says.

Foreign circuit

For Jithmie aged 17, it is an exciting and challenging prospect to play in the foreign circuit because even if a player goes upto two rounds he or she would be paid a small amount.

But then, the travails of making ends meet is an insoluble puzzle, she laments noting that her parents had spent on her tennis career for the last three years.

In the same breath she would not blame the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA).

"SLTA has helped in whatever way it can. They gave me my coaching fees, Rs.10,000 per month, for normal SLTA training," says Jithmie who is awaiting a Sports Ministry grant recommended by the SLTA, but which has not been forthcoming yet.

Of course, as Jithmie points out, that would only be a pittance down the professional lane. One primary reason she attributes to Sri Lanka being below international standard is because `we do not have enough players.' "We have to play the same old players over and over again unlike in countries like India, China, Thailand and Japan which does not help Lankan tennis at all.

Whether Jithmie will realise her international tennis dream only time will tell.