TENNIS

KUALA LUMPUR: National tennis players will only know what is in store for them next year when their new contracts with the National Sports Council (NSC) are out next month. However, they are not expecting much, programmes wise.

Ahmed Deedat Abdul Razak, who won the National Masters on Friday, admitted that the national players were not at their best this year. Malaysia only managed a tennis bronze at the Kuala Lumpur Sea Games and missed out on promotion to the Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Zone Group II.

"So far we have not heard anything in plan for us next year from our NSC manager," said 22-year-old Deedat. Our results were not that good, so we are not sure. Maybe we will just have to go ourselves to tournaments. We have to wait and see when our new contracts with the NSC come out middle of next month."

Deedat, however, is hoping that the the Lawn Tennis Association of Malaysia's (LTAM) plans to increase the number of men's ITF Pro Circuit tournaments (Futures) in Malaysia from three to six will materialise.

"I think that (increase) would be great. I played in the three tournaments here in October and learned a lot. I could feel my game improving from playing such high intensity matches. We can also save on costs as we do not have to travel abroad."

LTAM, who organise three Futures events in Sarawak and KL (two), all in October, hope to add three more in Perlis, Selangor and Melaka next year.

Deedat and Syed Agil Syed Naguib reached the men's doubles semi-finals in the Sarawak

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