Limpag: Why is Philta afraid of reforms?

Mike Limpag
Mike Limpag

MORE of the country’s top tennis players are voicing out their concerns regarding the suspension of the Philippine Tennis Association by the International Tennis Federation (ITF).

The players are directly affected since the two-year ban means they won’t be able to compete in ITF-sanctioned matches like the Davis Cup, which Cebu has hosted a couple of times.

Treat Huey, Ruben Gonzales and Johnny Arcilla, who all played when Cebu hosted the Davis Cup matches at Plantation Bay, hope Philta does implement reforms so the suspension will be lifted.

But so far, according to a report from the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the appeal is falling on deaf ears, which makes the whole thing curious. One of the demands of the ITF is that Philta reform its membership to include regional representation, which must involve tennis clubs.

In the past couple of months, since the government has loosened its rules in some areas, I’ve seen a few groups conduct their own tennis tournaments. I know of three, two in the Visayas and one in Mindanao. These groups spend their own money to hold these events, and these are the type of groups ITF wants included in Philta’s membership.

Why then is the national sport association for tennis so averse to change? Why call it “reckless and shameless destruction of Philippine tennis by wrongly suspending Philta?”

In the past few weeks, I’ve talked with a few youngsters who had picked up the sport in the last couple of years and all of them say the same thing, they haven’t joined a Philta age group event.

The ITF directive to Philta will mean kids like them will be included in Philta’s fold and that does not destroy Philippine tennis. In fact, it will improve it.

I learned the sport informally when I was a grade schooler, and I learned it outside of Philta’s fold. I picked it up again a few weeks ago, and I see the same thing, a generation of kids like mine who will grow with the sport not knowing what Philta is.

Now contrast that with football. I only learned about the Philippine Football Federation when I joined the Coke-Go-For-Goal in my teens, but now, kids of all ages, even those in my hometown, benefit directly from PFF’s changes through tournaments and clinics that are no longer limited to the big cities.

Doesn’t Philta want something like that? To see an exponential growth of its player base by including the regions?

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