World No. 2 Ons Jabeur was present as the ITF and Tunisian Tennis Federation announced earlier this month that Sousse will be the home for a new African Regional Training Centre.

A trailblazer and pioneer, the 27-year-old became the first African or Arab woman to contest a Grand Slam final in the Open era when she reached the Wimbledon final in July, while she also reached the US Open final last month.

Jabeur, however, was once in the position of those who will attend the new ITF African Regional Training Centre, which will provide talented players aged 13-18 with full-time training, schooling and competitive development. She knows what it is like to receive much-valued support. 

Having since progressed to the higher echelons of the sport, Jabeur is a figurehead for emerging African talent and was on-hand to discuss the new ITF African Regional Training Centre and all things African tennis development with itftennis.com.

How important do you feel the new training centre in Sousse will be for the development of young talent across the region and Africa more generally?

It is very important. I have been there and know how important it is for the young generation to have these kind of facilities. It is amazing. I am extra happy that the centre is in my country and in my city and hopefully this facility will help players develop and help players across Africa generally.

Remembering yourself at the age of some of the players who will be attending the centre, how significant is such support for an aspiring player?

I do remember how important it is to have this kind of training and access to this kind of facility. The ITF and the Grand Slam Player Development Programme have always been there for me and helped me on my journey – assistance that was so important. Hopefully, this centre will inspire a new generation. I was inspired by so many players before and hopefully the new generation will also be inspired and shine for Africa.

What difference, in terms of longer-term progression, can having support of this nature make?

As a player, it is always important to have a programme and a base. When you’re young, you need guidance and for this young generation to have a programme and to have someone guiding them and following their progress is important. Some players don’t get the chance to have this, so they are really lucky and blessed to have a strong programme and training base, while also being able to balance training and school.  

For those players who will be attending the centre, what is your best advice for them as they continue their development and push towards a career in professional tennis? 

For me, the best advice is to always believe in themselves, work hard and not take anything for granted. They are lucky enough to be here and are the luckiest guys to have been selected to train at this centre, so they should take this chance and see it as a great opportunity to develop, learn as much as they can and do their best.

Talking about tennis development in Africa more generally, how much tennis talent do you believe there is across Africa, and do you feel a bright future for the continent beckons?

I think Africa is going towards great development in tennis. I played a lot of African tournaments before and the way they want to put in the hard work is really amazing and I feel that centres such as this can help tennis develop around Africa and help players believe. I am like them, I grew up in Tunisia and I know what it is like to start believing you can make it. A centre like this is great for Africa and I really believe there is a bright future for African tennis.

What are your hopes for African tennis in the future and what do you think the landscape may look like in the coming years?

My dream is to see more and more African players. I am trying to set the example and to set the bar very high for the future. The most important thing we should believe is that we can do it. I know how hard we work in Africa, how much we appreciate the support and with all the help from the ITF and centres like this, we can really make an impact.