FORMER Mildura Grand Tennis International winner Casey Dellacqua described regional tournaments as a “tough slog” during her guest appearance at the courts on Friday.
Ms Dellacqua, who won the women’s singles title at the event in 2010, said while lower-level events could be hard, they were integral for up-and-coming athletes.
“It’s tough for the players but it’s always the way it’s been – you’re grinding at that level,” she said.
“They are important for different players for a number of reasons – they might be starting out, they might be wanting matches, they might be needing ranking points to get into a certain tournament.
“It makes you more resilient, it makes you want it more and it makes you want to play at the highest level.”
The Mildura tournament runs until March 8, with a total of $US25,000 prizemoney.
Ms Dellacqua said lower-level tournament prizemoney had been a talking point in tennis for many years.
“You see a lot of increasing prizemoney at the higher levels but at this level it has stayed the same,” she said.
“It’s tough at this level, you’re walking away at a minus most of the time, you’re not really making any money.
“There is no doubt that there needs to be more discussions about this International Tennis Federation level and how it is run, but there are so many different entities involved in that and I’m not sure how that operates.”
Ms Dellacqua attended the event as the guest speaker at Friday’s ladies’ lunch, and said she was excited to be back in Sunraysia.
“I’m really excited to be back,” she said.
“I’ve been here a few times over the years and I’ve always had good memories.”
