One final tennis hurrah

MELISSA Pine lives and breathes tennis. Not only is she vice-president of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) in Asia-Pacific, she's also the tournament director of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global tournament. The next edition of the WTA Finals - the fifth and last one to be held here - will take place at the Sports Hub from Oct 21-28.

Ms Pine - a former NCAA tennis player at Washington State University who later served as assistant coach of the team after she graduated - has witnessed some of the greatest matches in women's professional tennis from courtside during her five-year stint in Singapore.

Next week, she will again welcome to town the world's top eight singles players and doubles teams as they compete for a slice of the US$7 million prize purse. Those coming include world No 1 Simona Halep, US Open champion Naomi Osaka and last year's WTA Finals winner Caroline Wozniacki.

Before the tournament wraps up its Singapore run and moves to Shenzhen in 2019, BT Weekend caught up with Ms Pine and she reflected on her five-year stint here. The Canadian will soon relocate to St Petersburg in Florida, where the WTA's headquarters are located.

What's your fondest memory of the WTA Finals here?

That would be the very first opening night in October 2014. After all the hard work that was put in, expectations were high and there were still a lot of uncertainty as to how Singapore would embrace the event. I remember peeping into Centre Court from behind the curtain in the walk-on tunnel and watching the fans file into their seats, eagerly awaiting to witness the WTA Finals for the first time in Singapore. Seeing the smiles and wide eyes on the kids' faces in the crowd when the first players walked on court is something that remains in my mind.

I'll never forget the choir of young girls singing Majulah Singapura so beautifully. I still get goosebumps to this day when I hear the Singapore National Anthem.

What's been your favourite match?

I have so many favourites, it's hard to pick just one. One that stands out is last year's semi-final, a hard-fought battle that saw Venus Williams defeat Caroline Garcia in three sets. It was a seasoned champion against a young star, and they played with great determination and intensity.

Then there's Wozniacki against Serena Williams from 2014, another three-set semi-final that was an extraordinary showcase of women's tennis at its finest. The shot-making and athleticism was one for the ages.

Finally, there's the 2016 final between Angelique Kerber and Dominika Cibulkova. Kerber was world No 1 at the time and Cibulkova was the underdog playing for the biggest title of her career. Cibulkova never gave up and she burst into tears when she won. To see how much this meant to her, and her team and family, is something that will stick with me.

Which player has impressed you the most this season?

One is Naomi Osaka - not just for her results, but her poise and focus on the court. She started the year at No 68 on the rankings and is now fourth, and is the youngest US Open singles champion since 2006. She was the WTA Rising Stars champion in Singapore in 2015 and has shown she has now arrived as a top star on the WTA, so we look forward to having her back.

Another player is Petra Kvitova. She came back from an unexpected and traumatic stabbing incident in her home, on her tennis-playing left hand, which left her out of action for nearly six months in 2017. She returned this year and has a tour-leading 47 match wins and five singles titles. She was a finalist in Singapore in 2015, so it will be exciting to see her back again.

How can we encourage more people, especially the youths, to play the sport?

One of my proudest achievements was launching the WTA Future Stars in 2014, in association with Sport Singapore. This is an incredible opportunity for young kids, particularly girls in the under-14 and under-16 age groups, to not only learn the benefits of tennis but also how it can be a great tool for life.

Another excellent example is SC Global's Tennis for Every Child programme - created in collaboration with the Singapore Tennis Association - to widen interest and participation in primary schools that did not traditionally have tennis as a co-curricular activity. It has reached out to 15,000 students each year in 26 schools.

What will you miss most about Singapore?

I've come to love deeply a country and a region that I had little experience with before moving here. Singapore is clean, safe, beautiful, and picturesque. I will miss walking the trails at MacRitchie Reservoir, taking a boat to Pulau Ubin with a soursop juice in hand, or having coffee at my neighbourhood café in Robertson Quay.

I will also miss the amazing food. I've been told that I don't have a typical ang moh palate. I enjoy popiah, kaya butter toast, and, most of all, durian. No doubt, I will return for work or just for a visit, even if it's just for my durian fix.