A 15-year-old tennis player has been called to join the Junior Davis Cup Squad for Pakistan.
Roman Shafiq first started playing tennis at the age of 6 and also represented Burnley District at U11 and U14s in football.
Roman was born in Bolton and moved to Burnley in 2007 with his family. He said, “I get a feeling that I will play tennis for my entire life and cannot imagine ever giving it up – it’s a different sort of love to that I have for football.”
“I am in control and in my zone as a tennis player, and I know I will have to put many hours and minutes in to climb the ranks and this excites and motivates me, even more, to grow in the sport.”
The 15-year-old has a weekly training schedule of 14-16 hours, that includes, tactical tennis sessions, technical tennis, 121 sessions and a comprehensive sport science programme that includes conditioning and sports psychology.
He has recently moved up the LTA ratings and rankings at a higher than expected rate and is competing with the top two tier players in the region.
He is also a member of the International Tennis Federation, which means he is entitled to gain experience of playing European and US players at key events. He attends Burnley Tennis Club.
Romans coach Imran Answat, who is a former top 3 Great Britain Junior and later an ATP Professional player said, “Romy is very similar to myself as a Junior player and has all the tools to reach a very high level in tennis, especially with the hard work he is putting in.”
Romans grandparents who originate from Pakistan were also called to join up with the Junior Davis Cup squad (Under 16s) in Pakistan in the spring of 2020 He said, “It is unexpected so early, especially since I was still climbing the ranks at the county and regional tennis. I even had goals to play several ITF G5 tournaments in Western Europe in 2020 to give me vital experience.”
“I am filled with pride and look forward to taking a leap in my work ethic and training even further.”
“When you are only five months away from playing at the highest international level for a junior tennis player, there is only one thought, and that is to focus more, train hard and build my tennis towards peaking in the Spring of 2020.”
