Nanjing is home to the only national-level special tennis academy, the Tennis Academy of China, located in the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum Scenic Area on Purple Mountain and built on the former site of the nation’s Central Stadium in Republican times.
That such a facility exists in Nanjing comes to most as a surprise, especially when the Academy’s credentials become apparent; the only facility in China with four Grand-Slam-standard courts, second to none worldwide and also home to an Academia Sánchez-Casal, one of the most famous tennis academies in the world that has helped to train the likes of Andy Murray, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Daniela Hantuchova, among others.
Divided into a training/competition area and a living/teaching area, the Academy comes under the remit of the National Sports General Administration Tennis Sports Management Centre, Jiangsu Provincial Sports Bureau and the Nanjing Sports Institute. Construction began in 2013 and was completed the following year, at a cost of nearly ¥200 million.
The Academy offers a total of 40 tennis courts, among which are all the Grand Slams’ standard courts, again making the Chinese tennis academy unique in China. The total breakdown comprises seven clay courts, four grass courts (Wimbledon), four medium-paced hard courts (Australian Open), 17 fast-paced hard court (US Open) and 8 indoor courts. Among the clay courts, two are traditional red (French Open); five compound red. All four grass courts comply with Wimbledon specifications, while the Academy has been the venue for the “Wimbledon Road” China Division competition for 4 consecutive years.
Upon our visit, The Nanjinger spoke with Chen Jiahui, a player for the Jiangsu Women’s tennis singles team, who commented on the facility’s grass courts, saying, “There has not been any related competition recently, so the grass courts just looked like lawns. Today we are lucky to see the staff going on to the grass to paint lines and install the net”.
As for the Academia Sánchez-Casal, their cooperation with the Tennis Academy of China makes full use of the superior conditions of the facility and adopts the teaching modes of the Spanish school. ASC Nanjing began operations on 23 April, 2016, as the third Tennis Academy of Academia Sánchez-Casal around the world.
As for the answer to the question on everyone’s minds, yes, the Tennis Academy of China courts are available for hire, at times when there is no competition.
The Tennis Academy of China can be contacted on 84755905/18260032574/1589 5982478 and accessed via Zhong Lingjie Station (钟灵街) on Metro Line 2.