Taking the field with Lorenzo Sonego three days after having seen him on the centre court of Wimbledon against Roger Federer, receiving the on-court and in-class teachings of Emilio Sanchez and Gipo Arbino, having the way to play on the volley explained by Rocco Loccisano (ex-coach of Pat Cash) and the serve by Magnus Larsson, ex top 10 of the 90s able to beat at least once Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg and Mats Wilander.
If to all this you add the fitness preparation, le classes on technique, tactics and history of tennis, the Sardinian sea and the possibility to live, all together, incredible emotions like the Wimbledon final of Berrettini and the victory of Mancini’s Italy, then it becomes evident that the expression “an unforgettable experience” is the perfect summary of the LTC 2021 Summer Master
And the grand finale has yet to come, because 2-9 September the 20 boys and girls born in 2008 (see the format below) will compete in the Little Tennis Sparks Tournament, that will grant access to the 2022 final selections for the quadrennial Little Tennis Champions scholarships. All 20 will be invited to the Turin Nitto Atp Finals 2021 and the 4 finalists (2 boys and 2 girls) will also be rewarded with 2 e-bikes and 2 electric scooters offered by sponsor Iren, Luce, Gas e Servizi and with a supply of Valmora Nitto Atp Finals special edition water.
They have been wonderful days those passed between Turin and the Forte Village Resort, where the young 2008-born prospects have shown on the court all their passion for tennis, their abilities and an incredible desire to improve.
From the volley and talent of Sabrina Baranovschi, 3.2 from Tuscany, to the classic and efficient tennis of the Sardinian Valeria Barlini Pischedda; from the solidity on the baseline of Matilde Licia Bianchi from the island of Elba to the extraordinary power and dedication of the Bolognese 2.8 Azzurra Cremonini; from the “Simone Halep” forehand topspin of Alessandra Fiorillo to the impressive athleticism of Matilde Iezza; from the ability to find corners of the Apulian Gaia Leo to the determination of the Brescian Silvia Maffi; ending with the “Rafa Nadal” left-handed foregand of Alessia Sbrana and the clean technique of Katia Piazza, 3.4 from Palermo. Great quality also for the boys, starting from the attitude and passion of Alessandro Bazzini and from the great technical abilities of the Venetian Mattia Bille; from the real fighters Gabriel Deza Huete and Loris Mencarelli to the wonderful one-handed backhand of Nicolas Nicolaescu; from the heavy forehand of the Monzese 3.4 Christian Sala to the ability to dominate from the baseline of the “local idol” Aleksej Sarritzu; from the complete tennis and a “Sinner-like” two-handed backhand of the 3.1 Ligurian Federico Pugliese to the physicality and the power of strokes of Leonardo Spano, ending with the unpredictable variations belonging to the “champagne tennis” of the Sicilian Edoardo Tasca.
“I support I Tennis Foundation because it really helps youngsters who do not have the possibility to have the right experiences to then become champions – explained Lorenzo Sonego before leaving for the Tokyo Olympics, where he is still in the running in the mixed doubles table – Therefore thanks to this organisation they can train and listen to very competent people with important values that will help them get through both good moments and the more demanding and difficult ones. With the principal objective that they become great people and then maybe also good players. Not all have this opportunity, but these boys and girls also earned it because they have a lot of desire, passion and want to stay on the court to improve their game. I am very happy to be a part of this organisation that was founded by Simone Bongiovanni, with whom I also have a beautiful friendship, to give these young players the opportunity to live something unique both in and outside the court”.
For the 20 boys and girls of the LTC Summer Master, seeing him, playing with him at tennis and then also at football, talking to him, has represented the realisation of a dream and they did everything to let him know: “They welcomed me with an enthusiasm that I really didn’t expect. I am no Federer, Nadal nor Djokovic, but evidently I was able to convey them something and this really moved me. They are all humble with a great desire to have fun, play tennis and train. And they are also quite good: I played a few points with them and didn’t win a single one!”, concluded the number 26 of the ATP rankings.
THE LITTLE TENNIS SPARKS TOURNAMENT
As participants in the LTC Master, all the boys and girls will be invited to attend the Nitto ATP Finals 2021. The format envisages for the boys’ singles and girls’ singles a two-group round-robin where all the participants will compete against other 4 opponents. The groups will be drawn according to the positioning of the players in the FIT rankings, as per August 27, 2021. The mixed doubles will be played with a main draw knock-out, with two preliminary round to enter the main draw decided according to the FIT rankings.
The first phase of the Tournament will be held from 3 to 7 September in Turin at the International Training Centre of the ILO (United Nations Campus). The matches will take place in the morning (9-13) and afternoon (14,30-19). The finalists of the Little Tennis Sparks tournament (boys’ and girls’ singles and mixed doubles) will participate in the finals on 8 and 9 September at the Forte Village Resort in Santa Margherita di Pula, Sardinia.
I Tennis Campus is the first totally non-profit tennis academy, that has as its main goal to support young tennis players to give a chance, not only to prospects already sufficiently followed by their respective Federations, but also to the third and fourth strings that often remain in the shadows and for whom it is almost impossible to reach the top. The Summer Master had kicked off on June 30 with the rendezvous in Turin and the stay at the International Training Centre of the ILO, and then continued for three weeks at Forte Village Resort in Sardinia.
COACHING STAFF
ITC COACHING DIRECTOR: Emilio Sanchez.
COACHING PROGRAMME MANAGER: Cristian Cianci.
GUEST STAR: Lorenzo Sonego, Gipo Arbino, Magnus Larsson, Rocco Loccisano.
COACH: Andrea Fierro, Nicola Oventile, Natacha Marcucci, Gaia Schirru, Beppe Pagliarello.
FITNESS COACH: Giovanni Amarelli.
The initiative, with the patronage of the Italian Tennis Federation (FIT), Sport e Salute, Regione Piemonte, Comune di Torino, Regione Sardegna, Comune di Cagliari, Professional Tennis Registry, Fondazione Ferrero e Fondazione Cecilia Gilardi, is supported by prestigious partners like Academia Sanchez-Casal, Forte Village Resort, ES International School, Top Five Management, TS College Tennis and TennisTalker.
Main sponsor is the employment agency Openjobmetis, while the official sponsors are Iren Luce, Gas e Servizi, Società Reale Mutua di Assicurazioni, EY, Ceta, Cogefin Gruppo Colombo and Codè Crai Ovest.
The technical suppliers are Noberasco, Valmora, Accademia Osteopatia Asomi, Lexant, Studio Girardo, Publyteam, Extrafin, Head, Colmar and Luanvi.
Photo gallery Official photos of team and staff The personalities of the LTC Summer Master
Matteo Musso External Relations Director I Tennis Foundation musso@itennisfoundation.com