Parktown boys High School has a long history of tennis. The records first show tennis being played in 1928. Shortly after that there was regular participation against many familiar Johannesburg schools that Parktown boys still play against today. The school 1st team was entered into the local school tennis league. Over the years that followed there were many successes and the school 1st team recorded wins in the local school league. There were many ups and downs over the years as the depth of players varied.

In the early years use had to be made of any available courts that could be hired. In 1961 the school was able to secure the use of Wits University Tennis courts which meant only a short walk for the schoolboys. In 1970 the first 3 courts were built at the school, with a further 3 being added in 1985.

The school has had some well known tennis players over the years. In the 1930’s the school had Eric Sturgess in the first team, and he went on to be the No 1 in South Africa and represented the country in many matches. More recently in the 1980’s the school  was proud to have Wayne Ferreira attending the school , who also represented the country in many events.

The school is now proud to host the annual Wayne Ferreira Challenge for schoolboys which is held in May each year at the Ellis Park Tennis Stadium. This is the only SATA approved tournament for schoolboys and 16 teams participate from across the country. This is testimony to the schools commitment to grow and support tennis at all levels. 

All tennis players are welcome to join the tennis section. The tennis section is one of the smaller sporting sections, but we are a happy and supportive section.

COACHES

Parktown Boys High School employs the coaching services of a full time professional tennis coach. Ivan Sequiera has been with the school for 2 years and coaches the A and B teams. He has extensive coaching experience. There are also teachers who assist with the coaching of the C,D and E teams.

Each tennis team normally trains twice a week. League matches replace one of the training sessions.
During the league season matches are normally played on a Wednesday or Friday.

Although most sports run by age group, tennis is run differently. Team selection is based purely on strength of players and the ranking achieved in challenge matches determines team position. Currently the school enters 5 teams in the various school tennis leagues.

The focus of our coaching is to work on all aspects of the tennis game =  looking at match play, teamwork, mental toughness and physical fitness.

Tennis has traditionally been a summer sport at Parktown boys. However, due to the early start of league matches and the need to start early training, as well as the hosting of Wayne Ferreira Challenge, Tennis has become an all year sports event at Parktown Boys High School.