Tennis Australia in tug-of-war with Turkey over junior player Mustafa Ege Sik

One of those behavioural incidents allegedly occurred on a Tennis Australia-funded overseas trip. Sik is currently training at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain.

TA said in a statement to this masthead that it was “not unusual” for international junior players to spend time in different training environments for development purposes.

“Decisions about nationality or residency are personal matters for athletes and their families, and it’s not appropriate for us to comment on individual circumstances,” the statement continued.

“Our focus is always on providing development opportunities for young talent who meet the criteria to train within our programs.”

TA did not respond to this masthead’s question on whether it was normal for an overseas player to receive the level of support that Sik has.

The situation comes at a time when there is a shortage of emerging Australian men’s players, on top of Alex de Minaur being the country’s sole top-50 player.

The only Australian men younger than 24 inside the world’s top 500 are 22-year-old James McCabe (ranked No.210) and 21-year-old Edward Winter (No.494), while Australia’s Davis Cup team suffered a shock defeat to Ecuador a fortnight ago.

None of Australia’s nine players advanced beyond the second round in the boys’ singles at last month’s Australian Open.

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Cruz Hewitt, who turned 17 in December, did not play in the junior event at Melbourne Park and is instead prioritising his transition to the men’s tour. Hewitt is widely viewed as Australia’s best teenage men’s prospect.

Tim Jolley has served as Tennis Australia’s chief strategy and performance officer since March 2020, and is responsible for overseeing the player pathway program.

Jolley formerly worked at Bain & Company, like former TA president Jayne Hrdlicka and her successor Chris Harrop.

Adding to the intrigue is that Turkish Tennis Federation (TTF) president Şafak Müderrisgil mentioned Sik among her country’s best young talents in a wide-ranging interview this month with Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah.

Müderrisgil said TTF launched a support fund specifically for young Turkish players in July last year that had raised 152 million Turkish liras ($4.89 million) from 331 investors.

“We’re seeing diversification and growth in our talent base, which is extremely encouraging,” she said.

“While our senior players continue to compete; it’s vital that younger athletes gain experience, compete internationally and appear at grand slams. This year alone, six Turkish players [including Sik] competed at the Australian Open – that’s hugely valuable.”

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