Executive members in the Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) officially adopted the residents in the Elizabeth Estates Children's Home, wanting to provide them with equal opportunity in learning the sport of tennis.
On Saturday, director of the 'Play and Stay' program Bradley Bain along with national team member Larikah Russell and Ricardo Demeritte took about 16 of the residents through a series of drills and games. In the introductory lessons, the residents worked on hand and eye coordination, as well as foot work. The 'Play and Stay' program, designed to improve the playing skills of all, has caught on quickly in the country and president of the local association Derron Donaldson is ready to take it a step further.
According to Donaldson, the local association is planning to adopt more homes and use the development program as a form of exercise for residents. Each month, the BLTA will reach out to other organizations in the capital and the Family Islands. Donaldson said: "Now that the 'Play and Stay' program has caught on in the country, we want to do more. We want to make sure that everyone who wants to play tennis in the country is playing. If it means us going out and setting up the courts, we are willing and ready to do so. Adopting the Elizabeth Estates Children's Home is just the first stop on our agenda. We plan to do more, go to more homes and schools.
"Bradley is doing a fantastic job in making sure that The Bahamas at large is playing tennis. His aggressive approach in building the sport is really helping as more and more persons are catching on. He, along with Larikah and Ricardo take the registered persons through a series of drills, that anyone can easily catch on to, so persons who believe that they can play, or always wanted to play can come out to any of our venues especially when we are hosting the 'Play and Stay' training sessions."
The BLTA has already launched the program in several schools in New Providence. In a couple of weeks, a team will travel to Freeport, Grand Bahama, and host a two-day clinic for teachers. In March, they will travel to Exuma and re-visit Eleuthera in April. At the completion of the courses, all participants will be awarded certificates.
"Everyone is under the impression that tennis is an expensive sport, when in fact it is really not," said Donaldson. "It doesn't cost a dime to come and teach, or hold sessions at the schools or other places, so with that in mind, we are encouraging persons to come and join us. The goal is to have everyone in the country pick up a tennis racket at least once or twice. We want to see more persons play."
The 'Play and Stay' program has changed some of the rules in the sport, making it easier for persons to serve, rally and score. Newer balls are now being used on smaller courts that have lower nets. The red balls are for beginners who will eventually move on to the orange and then green. The height of the net, as well as the size of the courts and rackets, will change with each step a player takes while enrolled in the program. The yellow balls, used in regular play, will be introduced during the final step. Persons will then play full games on the standard-sized courts.

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