“Who will take over when we are done?” Egyptian ATP legends Mohamed Safwat and Karim Maamoun revamp the future of tennis with groundbreaking strategies as the need for new faces becomes pressing

The two players have taken it on themselves to build a team for the future.

“Who will take over when we are done?” Egyptian ATP legends Mohamed Safwat and Karim Maamoun revamp the future of tennis with groundbreaking strategies as the need for new faces becomes pressing

Egyptian tennis ace Mohamed Safwat (Image via Imago)

Tennis in Egypt is still flourishing. There have been only a few top players from the African country. Currently, there are no players from Egypt in the top 100 in the ATP rankings. The highest-ranked Egyptian is Mohamed Safwat, the World No.360. The Egyptian Davis Cup captain has been the top player in the country for a long time now.

After Safwat, Karim Mohamed Maamoun has also been in the top ranks. However, both the players are almost in their mid-30s and have only a few years of tennis left in them. Hence, preparing a pool of players who can take over the mantle from them becomes a necessity. Safwat talked about the same in his recent conversation with the National.

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The 33-year-old revealed how he and Maamoun are working day in and out with the Egyptian Tennis Federation (ETF) to help the emerging players. The Egyptian Davis Cup captain recently led his team to victory over Ecuador for a place in the World Group I for the first time. Egypt beat Ecuador 3-1 and there was a rising star who also played a crucial role.

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24-year-old Alexandrian Amr Elasrawy posted a big upset over former top-100 player Emilio Gomez and helped his team qualify for the playoffs in September. Safwat, 33, and Maamoun, 32 are working with such talented youngsters to prepare the team for the future. They also held a conversation with the president of the Egyptian Tennis Federation, former top-40 player Ismail El Shafei in the same regard.

We had an honest conversation and we spoke about, ‘what’s next?’ There is a big gap between Karim and I, and the players behind us. Karim is ending his career soon, and I’m not in my 20s anymore, so who will take over when we are done?
Mohamed Safwat told to The National.

What and how is the plan working for the future of Egyptian tennis?

Mohamed Safwat and Karim Mohamed Maamoun, after consulting with the ETF president, devised a plan where Safwat would take the lead and set up a Davis Cup program, which included him taking over as playing captain, and Maamoun would head up a development program that brought together six of the most promising players under the umbrella of the ETF.

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Mohamed Safwat (Image via Imago)

The new system in place provides the rising stars a place to train, a tennis coach, a fitness coach, and a companion who ensures they are never alone at tournaments. When they fly to Sharm El Sheikh to compete in ITF events, either Safwat or Maamoun is with them.

The ETF and relevant authorities are also working to bring opportunities for them to compete internationally. The new system also ensures that deserving players are given a wildcard entry to the ITFs hosted in Egypt instead of the rotational system in place before.

We’ve created a healthy competition between the players, so it’s no longer a case of comfort zone where a player feels they are guaranteed a wild card. No, it’s now a case of, I need to work and I need to earn [it] and when I get a wild card I need to make the best out of it.
Mohamed Safwat explained.

The new system is fetching results with many players enjoying better results at the ITF events.

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