LONDON • 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 happen only 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."
The doubles world No. 69 said Indonesia's prospects in the sport could be bright, with its population of more than 250 million people and love of the fellow racket sport badminton.
"We have a good future in tennis. I really hope I can inspire younger kids," he said. "I really hope the government can help them.
"We have to start, at least, by having courts and a proper facility."
Rungkat has been playing men's doubles with Chinese Taipei's Hsieh Cheng-peng for 18 months. They are two of the top six men's doubles players from Asia on the tennis circuit.
"We've had so much history with Asian doubles players like (India's) Leander Paes," said Rungkat. "Being there on top with them is a great achievement. It's the new generation we have coming up."
He and Hsieh lost their Wimbledon first-round encounter to 14th seeds Jurgen Melzer and Oliver Marach of Austria, 6-3, 6-4, 1-6, 2-6, 11-9. There are no Indonesians in the world men's singles rankings - and just him in the top 700 in the doubles.
As part of his vision for inspiring a new generation of players in Indonesia, Rungkat would love to back up his Asian Games success with a spot at Tokyo 2020. "I would love to play in the Olympics. It's my dream since I was a child," he said.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
