Indonesian at Wimbledon pleads for help after tennis courts replaced by baseball field

Christopher Rungkat is ploughing a lone furrow for tennis in one of the world's most populous nations: a task made all the harder after Indonesia turned a top tennis facility into a baseball field.

Rungkat, 29, is one of Asia's top doubles players, riding on a career high in the rankings and making his main draw debut at Wimbledon.

The 2018 Asian Games mixed doubles gold medallist hopes his exploits can inspire a new generation to take up tennis -- but said it could only happen if the Indonesian authorities build the facilities.

"There are younger guys trying to come up. I know it's tough; I've been there," Rungkat told AFP.

"But we don't really have a good facility back home in Jakarta.

"We had a good facility with a lot of clay courts and hard courts -- but the government decided to convert them to a baseball field, which is very sad for me. It's right in the centre of Jakarta."
"I really hope the government can help them. "We have to start, at least, by having courts and a proper facility."
- Asian history -
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"All the work that we've been putting in is paying off this year."
- 'Next Indonesian hope' -
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"I think she's going to be the next Indonesian hope in tennis."