Sam Cane, Nehe Milner-Skudder, Joe Moody and Julian Savea are recruited to the junior ranks assisting tennis superstars Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
Sam Cane, Nehe Milner-Skudder, Joe Moody and Julian Savea are recruited to the junior ranks assisting tennis superstars Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Bethanie Mattek-Sands.
The world-champion All Blacks have put their slick ball-handling skills to the test as ball boys in a new video featuring some of the biggest names in women's tennis.
Proving their ball skills aren't limited to the rugby field, World Cup winners Sam Cane, Nehe Milner-Skudder, Joe Moody and JulianSavea are recruited to the junior ranks assisting tennis superstars Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki and Bethanie Mattek-Sands at the ASB Classic.
The rugby players are filmed chasing balls, holding towels and shading the tennis players from the sun during an exhibition match at Auckland's ASB Arena.
Although they use a few techniques more suited to the rugby field, it doesn't take long for the supreme athletes to show their flair under the careful courtside tuition of their younger ball boy and girl mentors. The exhibition match ends with hugs and a remarkable group selfie of some of the world's top sportspeople.
Last year, a similar video using trained dogs as ball boys hit peak cuteness and became a viral sensation on social media.
ASB Bank's head of community and sponsorship Mark Graham said ASB was thrilled with the public's response to the video.
"Last year we wowed the world with 'The Best Ball Boys in the World' with our dog stars and we weren't sure it would be possible to find anybody that could do a better job of supporting this year's ASB Classic players on the court. But if anyone was up to the challenge, we knew it would be our All Blacks," he said.
Mr Graham said the sponsor enjoyed bringing top tennis players together with the champion All Blacks.
"Celebrating ASB's first year of sponsoring both the men's and women's tournaments and of the All Blacks, seeing tennis champions and rugby champions interacting on the same court provided a bit of fun for the public; it was a great way to show ASB's love for both sports," he said.
