Moldova ready for historic moment as Del Potro and Halep wait in wings
A series of historic moments await Moldovan tennis in the coming weeks – and the overriding theme is the placing of rackets in hands, greater access to tennis and the sport's growth across the nation.
An opening ceremony in capital city Chisinau on 23 May will officially unveil a new National Training Centre (NTC) which houses specially built courts for professional events and a range of training programmes for all skill levels.
The importance of NTCs has previously been highlighted by itftennis.com and 100 centres of training excellence around the world is the ITF’s goal as it continues to improve standards across the globe.
Constructed with the help of financial assistance through the ITF Facility Grant programme, the NTC will act as a centralised hub that drives Moldovan tennis forward over the coming years.
As part of the celebrations to mark the new NTC, a mixed doubles match between two-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1 Simona Halep and 2009 US Open winner Juan Martin del Potro will take place.
Halep and Del Potro will compete alongside home favourite and former world No. 39 Radu Albot, whose role model status has been crucial in boosting tennis participation in Moldova, and Lia Belibov – a 17-year-old junior.
“We are proud and excited to welcome Grand Slam champions Simona Halep and Juan Martin del Potro for the opening event of the NTC,” said National Tennis Federation of Moldova President Ceslav Ciuhrii.
“Their presence is not only a celebration for fans, but also a powerful inspiration for the next generation of Moldovan players. It underlines the level of ambition we have for this project and for the future of tennis in Moldova.”
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The following week, the NTC will host the Moldova Open – an ATP Challenger event. Hosting events is significant for nations as it offers developmental opportunities for players of that nation, international prestige and commercial possibilities.
While Moldova has regularly hosted ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors events, the last time it staged a tournament on the ITF World Tennis Tour was 2016, while is has never hosted an ITF Men’s World Tennis Tour event.
The Moldova Open will be the second ATP Challenger that Moldova has hosted after staging the same event last year, although the new NTC will open up all sorts of possibilities.
After the ATP Challenger, attention turns to Davis Cup and the Europe Group III event at the NTC from 10 June. It will be the first time since 2014 that Moldova has staged the men’s World Cup of Tennis.
As well as Moldova, teams from Azerbaijan, Kosovo, Latvia, Georgia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Ireland will compete there in Davis Cup – the largest and longest running men’s international team competition in sport.
“The opening of the National Training Centre really is a historic moment for Moldovan tennis,” added Ciuhrii.
“For the first time, we have a modern, fully equipped facility that allows us not only to host international competitions, but also to build a complete development system for players, coaches and young talents.
“In the short term, it immediately puts Moldova on the professional tennis map. In the long term, it creates the foundation for sustainable growth of the sport in our country.
“It is also significant that the NTC will host both an ATP Challenger 100 event and Davis Cup ties. This combination reflects two key directions of our strategy: integration into the global professional circuit and the strengthening of our national team pathway.
“Bringing these events together in one venue sends a strong signal that Moldova is ready to be a consistent and reliable host for international tennis.”
Debbie Kirkwood, the ITF’s Head of Performance and Events, will be in attendance at the opening ceremony on 23 May, while the NTC is currently being assessed through the National Training Centre Recognition Programme.
With the ITF keen to raise the bar and ensure a global footprint, the National Training Centre Recognition Programme was introduced in 2018 and set criteria for NTCs worldwide.
In broad terms, the recognition programme enables the ITF to continue strengthening the foundations of tennis so that talented players progress along the player pathway and maximise their potential.
Drilling down further, a player’s daily training environment – who is coaching, the number of hours, the type of fitness training, the availably of recovery tools, frequency of competition – and how it is all woven together is so important.
That is where the recognition programme comes in. The ITF recognises an NTC as being Gold, Silver, Bronze or White once the criteria applicable for each level has been met.
However, the focus is more on what the award represents than the award itself and there are currently 29 NTCs around the world that have been recognised through the programme.
“It is all about raising and monitoring standards,” added Kirkwood. “We want more players from more nations participating in quality training environments on a daily basis.
"Ultimately, we want quality training under the supervision of high-level coaches in well-managed facilities which have an holistic approach. Programmes that are structured in this way can lead to long-term systemic success.
“We currently have 29 nations around the world with NTCs that are doing just this. Ideally, we would like to see many nations, say 100, with this type of structure. This would give those players a better chance to continue their journey along the competitive pathway.
“The National Training Centre Recognition Programme is broad, but it is all about making a difference.”