<p>The second edition of the AITA National series tennis tournament for the RT Narayan Memorial Rolling Trophy will be held at the KSLTA Stadium here from February 15 to 20.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Actor and former Member of Parliament from Mandya, Ramya, who is RT Narayan’s daughter, launched the under-16 tournament, which is being conducted by the KSLTA and the RT Narayan Memorial Trust.<br /><br />“Tennis is an expensive sport. So, it is all the more important that we come forward and help these kids pursue their passion,” said Ramya.<br /><br />“I hope this tournament will perpetuate the memory of my father, who was extremely passionate about the game and worked tirelessly for its development in the State,” she added.<br /><br />Highlighting the significance of holding such tournaments, CS Sunder Raju, secretary of KSLTA said: “We believe that the under-16 is the most important age of transition because at the end of the day the transition period takes a long time.”<br /><br />The tournament is set to witness participation from top juniors. Karnataka’s challenge in the boys’category will be spearheaded by Abhimanyu Vannem Reddy, who is fifth in the AITA rankings.<br /><br />Arjun Mariyappa (62), Kavan Somu Kumar (79) and Manish G (200) will be the other top ranked players from the State.<br /><br />Prathiba Prasad Narayan (26), Pragathi Prasad Narayan (78) and Naisha Srivastav (155) will be the prominent names representing Karnataka in the girls’event.<br /><br />Qualifying rounds will be played on February 13 and 14. The main draw begins on February 15. Winners and runners-up of the competition will be given cash awards of Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000 respectively.<br /><br />On the occasion, Ramya also presented a cheque of Rs one lakh to National junior champion BR Nikshep in appreciation of his achievements. However in his absence, his father Ravi Kumar collected the cheque on his behalf.</p>
<p>The second edition of the AITA National series tennis tournament for the RT Narayan Memorial Rolling Trophy will be held at the KSLTA Stadium here from February 15 to 20.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Actor and former Member of Parliament from Mandya, Ramya, who is RT Narayan’s daughter, launched the under-16 tournament, which is being conducted by the KSLTA and the RT Narayan Memorial Trust.<br /><br />“Tennis is an expensive sport. So, it is all the more important that we come forward and help these kids pursue their passion,” said Ramya.<br /><br />“I hope this tournament will perpetuate the memory of my father, who was extremely passionate about the game and worked tirelessly for its development in the State,” she added.<br /><br />Highlighting the significance of holding such tournaments, CS Sunder Raju, secretary of KSLTA said: “We believe that the under-16 is the most important age of transition because at the end of the day the transition period takes a long time.”<br /><br />The tournament is set to witness participation from top juniors. Karnataka’s challenge in the boys’category will be spearheaded by Abhimanyu Vannem Reddy, who is fifth in the AITA rankings.<br /><br />Arjun Mariyappa (62), Kavan Somu Kumar (79) and Manish G (200) will be the other top ranked players from the State.<br /><br />Prathiba Prasad Narayan (26), Pragathi Prasad Narayan (78) and Naisha Srivastav (155) will be the prominent names representing Karnataka in the girls’event.<br /><br />Qualifying rounds will be played on February 13 and 14. The main draw begins on February 15. Winners and runners-up of the competition will be given cash awards of Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000 respectively.<br /><br />On the occasion, Ramya also presented a cheque of Rs one lakh to National junior champion BR Nikshep in appreciation of his achievements. However in his absence, his father Ravi Kumar collected the cheque on his behalf.</p>
