Tennis Australia’s National Tennis Academy Class of 2023 announced | 9 March, 2023 | All News | News and Features | News and Events

The National Tennis Academy (NTA) class of 2023 has been revealed, with 27 players aged between 14 and 23 joining the program.

Australian Open men’s doubles champion Rinky Hijikata leads the list of players returning to the NTA, along with top-50 ranked juniors Hayden Jones (world No.30) and Charlie Camus (world No.47), Billie Jean King Cup representative Olivia Gadecki and Taylah Preston, who hit a career-high world junior ranking of No.10 last year.

Emerson Jones, the world’s highest-ranked junior player in the 2008 birth year at No.29, joins fellow 14-year-olds Jake Dembo and Tahlia Kokkinis as new members of the squad.

Tennis Australia’s National Tennis Academy is led by Chris Mahony and Brent Larkham. It has been designed as a holistic development program and is the pinnacle of the national tennis pathway.

The world-class program for aspiring professional players is supported by a further 11 coaches and supplemented by a team of experts in physical performance, nutrition, performance analysis, physiotherapy, sports psychology, medical support and wellbeing. A personalised education program for school-aged players is another key pillar of the NTA.

“When we launched our new Performance Pathway in 2020, our goal was to provide more opportunities to more players throughout the development pathway. With initiatives such as expanding the Super 10s program, the zone and national development squads we are doing just that, with more than 400 players engaged in these programs,” Chief Strategy and Performance Officer Timothy Jolley said.

“At the elite level we are delighted to welcome the 2023 cohort to the National Tennis Academy and provide them with the support required to compete with the very best in the world. We are proud of the outstanding results many of our athletes have achieved over the past 12 months and wish them all well for the coming year.”