Acing a legacy — SA’s Kruger sisters are on a tennis mission

Zoë Kruger in action during the W60 Pretoria Tuks International Tennis Tournament in 2022.(Photo by Reg Caldecott/Gallo Images)

By Yanga Sibembe

4 Aug 2024

Zoë and Isabella Kruger follow in their Springbok father’s footsteps, making their mark for South Africa.

Sisters Zoë and Isabella Kruger are always doing their best to fly the South African flag high. The young tennis players have handled all their challenges with the panache of Roger Federer.

They can also call on the legacy of their late father, World Cup-winning Springbok Ruben Kruger.

Despite having such a famous father, who died in 2010 aged 39 after a lengthy battle with brain cancer, Zoë (21) and Isabella (19) are quietly carving their own paths in sport.

They hope to enhance the Kruger legacy, as well as push open doors that some budding tennis prospects find locked – despite immense talent.

More opportunities

The sisters are fresh from a victory each at the Curro Centre Court series, a three-tournament event that took place in Durban in June and July, providing local tennis stars with the perfect platform to showcase their quality against international players.

In addition to winning a singles title each during the showcase, organised in collaboration with Tennis South Africa and the International Tennis Federation, the Kruger sisters also reached the doubles final. They were vanquished by No 1 seeds Ksenia Laskutova (Russia) and Verena Meliss (Italy) 6-2, 7-5.

The sisters stressed the need for more such tournaments, because South Africa has a lack of exposure to the elite level of the game even though it is a country with the potential to produce great players – as seen with the likes of Kevin Anderson, Kgothatso Montjane and Lloyd Harris.

“A really big thing that we’re missing in South Africa and Africa as a whole is exposure to international players and tournaments, to be able to compete regularly at that level,” Isabella told Daily Maverick.

“Also, not everyone has the funds to go and compete overseas. At a point, if you are 18 and you are not a certain ranking, you have to decide if you’re going to university or if you’re going professional. So the biggest thing is exposure to those matches.”

Zoë said: “A lot of our players stop at a certain age because travelling from South Africa and going overseas is not cheap at all. Tennis itself is not a cheap sport; it’s really expensive.

“If you look at the European circuit, there are tournaments within a two-hour radius. There are tournaments almost everywhere, the whole year round.

Kruger sisters tennis Zoë Kruger in action during the W60 Pretoria Tuks International Tennis Tournament in 2022. (Photo: Reg Caldecott / Gallo Images)

“There have been so many times where you do get an opportunity to play against quality opposition and you realise that you can compete against this calibre of players.

Isabella added: “That’s how it was for me as well. I used to be intimidated by how good someone was [on paper]. But when I played against them, I’d see that they are beatable. So you gain confidence being in those situations, even if you lose.”

The sisters are as passionate as they are about exposure because they packed up and moved to the US on a tennis scholarship in 2014. However, they know that not everyone with tennis talent is as fortunate.

The Kruger family lived in the US for six years before moving back to South Africa in 2020 when Covid-19 halted a number of activities. They have not sought to move back to the US.

They are now based in the Western Cape, but spend much of their time travelling to international tournaments to continue honing their craft.

Garage sessions

Where did their love for the sport come from? Isabella cites Zoë as a major influence on her falling in love with tennis, even though she played a number of different sports.

“I’ve always loved tennis the most. Maybe it’s because my uncle is a tennis coach. One of my cousins plays tennis. But the biggest reason is probably because my older sister plays tennis. I always wanted to do what she does,” Isabella said.

“The reason I liked tennis from a young age, before I even knew it was my purpose, is because you always have a chance to win. I hated the fact that in athletics it’s about time. So, if you fall a little bit behind [at the beginning of a race], there’s very little chance of you coming back to win. In tennis you can be down 5-0 and still have a chance to win,” the teenager added.

Zoë’s love of tennis was forged in her grandmother’s garage in Pretoria. “Playing in my grandma’s garage [is one of my first memories of tennis]. My dad actually drew a line on the wall and we’d hit for hours against [it]. That was when I was about three years old,” the elder Kruger sister reminisced.

When the sisters received the scholarship, she was already thinking about tennis as something she could pursue professionally, even though she was only 12 at the time.

Unfortunately, she feels that injuries have slowed her down over the years.

“I’ve experienced a lot of injuries. Most of them came when I was really doing well in my career. They were brutal injuries. For example, I’ve had surgery on both my wrists; then stress fractures and stuff like that,” said Zoë, who is studying towards a law degree.

“But in those periods, I’ve had a major mind shift. I try to focus on the positives. Every person’s career is so different. Not every person is made to be a certain ranking. The journey is part of the fun. That’s where you learn the most. It’s not always about the end goal,” she added.

Big dreams

Zoë, who counts US hurdler Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and US tennis player Sloane Stephens among her role models, still has massive dreams.

“I know that I’m capable of playing at a good level. But the goal for me is to be the best version of myself. My focus is doing what I need to do to be the best me. In the near future, I do hope to play in a Grand Slam and maybe one day win a Grand Slam,” she said.

Read more: Memory serves – reflection of South Africa’s proud track record at the US Open

Isabella – who finished high school in 2023 and previously competed in the Junior Wimbledon Championships – has similar ambitions.

Nevertheless, she is not willing to put too much pressure on herself and prefers to focus on what she can control in the present.

“The times when I’m doing the best are when I’m focusing on improving and not just focusing on the result,” she said.

“What I’m focusing on the most at the moment is playing a lot of matches and staying healthy. I want to compete at a high level for as long as I can.

“I don’t focus too much on my ranking. If you focus on the right things, the results will follow. So my focus is on what I can control.”

The sisters are currently in Europe, where they will play in a few tournaments. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R35.

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