A Bolton-trained teenager is all set to play at junior Wimbledon this week when she will be one of the youngest competitors in her age group.
April Sackflame, from Salford, who only turned 13 three months ago, will be coming up against older players from all over the world when she steps onto the iconic grass courts, one of only four British girls – and the youngest – in the 16-strong field.
Ranked GB number one in her age group, April is one of the leading talents at the Lawn Tennis Association’s Regional Player Development Centre at Bolton Arena Community Sports Village, where she’s been coached for the past three years.
She has secured an automatic qualification for the Wimbledon Under-14s championship after finishing runner-up in her first grass court competition at the Tennis Europe Category 1 Tournament played at Raynes Park, which is used as a training venue for Wimbledon and the pre-championship Queen’s Tournament.
“It’s a brilliant achievement and it’s going to be a brilliant experience for her,” says her arena-based coach Elliot Chang. “She’ll go and compete hard, that’s the type of player she is, but it’s definitely going to be a step up.”
April’s dad, Sultan, a single parent, and Elliot will accompany her to London today (Monday) for two days’ practice before the round robin tournament begins on Wednesday.
Players in groups of four will play each other with each group winner progressing to the semi-finals. Eight of the competitors, like April, qualify on merit due to their achievements, while the other eight are chosen based on their world rankings.
April’s tennis journey began when Sultan spotted a social post by a friend about playing tennis with his daughter at the Northern Lawn Tennis Club in Manchester. He thought it ‘looked cool’ so he decided to take April, then aged five, along for a try.
“She liked it, but she wasn’t very good,” says Sultan. “So, we came back and practised in the park for 12 months until she was good enough to go back.
“It was then she started to show how good she could be. People saw her energy, and commented about how physical, fast and strong she was. I didn’t really know what the tennis journey looked like, so things just happened, and we were like, wow!”
Sultan, a business analyst who grew up in Nigeria, says it will be a proud moment when April takes to the court on Wednesday: “I am immensely proud considering my background, considering her mom’s background. I played football but only amateur and her mom didn’t do sports much.
“Because of how good she is, she’s been able to mix with not just her peers, but people older. I almost feel we’re not playing on the same even surface in terms of resources and those types of things.
“So, walking out on that court for the first time at Wimbledon, and people being able to watch worldwide, will be amazing. I’ve notified some of my friends in Africa, and some of her mom’s people too, so that will be a really proud moment.”
April currently trains five-days-a-week at the arena and her programme includes one-to-one development sessions, squad training, strength and conditioning work, nutrition advice and sports science – all done with Elliot and other members of the RPDC coaching team.
“I would say, in terms of the level of potential that she has, she is right up there with, if not the best, then one of the best,” adds Elliot, who has been coaching for 13 years and was once a high-ranking junior himself.
“She’s a fantastic athlete. She has good natural ability, and really good natural weapons – she hits the ball really hard for her age, so in terms of a game style, it’s very aggressive. It’s very front foot, trying to take it to her opponent. And for her age, she’s got very, very good serve.
“When you look at the age that she’s at now, and the skills that she’s got, she has so many things that she’s going to need later on down the line to be competitive as she gets to 15 or 16 and tries to break into the professional game.”
Once her Wimbledon adventure is over, April is looking forward to another new chapter – moving on from the arena’s RPDC programme to take up a place at the LTA’s National Academy at Loughborough in September. She is one of only four players to be chosen this year and is a year younger than the regular age to be accepted.
