NZ-born Lulu Sun in action during the ASB Tennis Classic in Auckland in January. Photo / Dean Purcell
Four weeks ago, as Tennis New Zealand chief executive Julie Paterson was about to head out for a morning walk, her phone buzzed.
When Paterson saw who was calling, she told her husband their Saturday stroll would have to wait. The resultant phone conversation stopped Paterson in her tracks and was one that could change a sport.
“It was quite a big moment - I was a little bit lost for words,” Paterson tells the Weekend Herald. “I had no idea which way the decision was going to go. Previous calls felt quite positive then on other calls, maybe not, I’m not sure. So when they rang me I really had no idea whether it was going to be a yes response or a no response.”
On the other end of the line Southland-born Lulu Sun, who is currently ranked 151 on the WTA tour, had just told Paterson she wanted to change allegiance to this country, after playing under the Swiss flag for most of her career.
It gives tennis aficionados here something they have been dreaming about for years. A top-level singles player, with the potential to go higher. Sun qualified for the Australian Open last January and could be eligible for direct entry into grand slams, if she can get her ranking closer to the top 100.
Marina Erakovic was the last New Zealand female to compete at that level in singles and our only top 100 player, of either gender, this century, while the last Kiwi male to be a regular fixture at grand slams in singles was Brett Steven in the 1990s.
“It’s tremendous news,” admits Paterson, “It’s great for the sport. There will be a lot of interest generated as we watch her progression.”
That appeal was shown at the ASB Classic this year, as Sun became a crowd favourite on her run through qualifying to the second round, especially after the media stories revealing she was contemplating representing New Zealand in the future.
Sun’s family link to this country began in 1998, when her grandmother, from Nanchang in southern China, bought a property in Te Anau.
“She wanted a place of nature, New Zealand is the perfect place for that,” Sun told the Herald in January.
Sun was born there and spent five years in this country, before her parents moved to Switzerland. Sun later gained a scholarship to the University of Texas, playing college tennis for the Longhorns.
She worked her way up the ladder – playing ITF tournaments around her college schedule – and broke into the top 500 in 2019 as a 17-year-old – though injuries and the Covid pandemic stymied her subsequent progress.
Sun competed in 14 events in 2021, winning an ITF $25,000 tournament in Portugal and reaching another final in Spain to move her ranking inside the top 300, as well as helping her university team claim the NCAA title, their first since 1995.
She turned professional in 2022, reaching 214 by the end of last year. Throughout that time Sun has been part of the Swiss system, though she retained a New Zealand passport and has always been proud of her heritage.
“New Zealand is part of who I am,” said Sun in January. “I’ve been to so many countries but New Zealand from the get-go I feel really comfortable here and I am used to the culture. I’m always happy to come back.”
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Last December recently appointed TNZ national coach Chris Bint, aware of Sun’s background, got in touch over social media.
The next day Bint had a 45-minute phone call with Sun and her stepfather Sinclair Hoffmann. It was a general chat but Bint emphasised that Sun could be at the forefront of the New Zealand programme as a singles player, with up to three Olympic cycles ahead of her.
After that initial contact, Bint and Sun caught up in Auckland during the ASB Classic, taking a walk up Mt Eden.
“At that time we didn’t actually talk too much about switching but more just getting an insight into who she was, her values and what she stands for as a person,” said Bint.
At the end of a memorable week – where Sun progressed beyond the first round of a WTA tour level event for only the second time – she was left to percolate on the decision.
The wheels kept moving though, as Sun’s mother Lele and stepfather Sinclair visited TNZ in January, while discussions continued with her France-based agent.
TNZ had work to do, to help with Sun’s costs on tour. They couldn’t compete with Switzerland financially but had to offer something.
“We have been able to put together a package that will support Lulu, in the way that she will need to be supported,” said Paterson. “She has a good team of people around her and that all takes money.”
Paterson said the money came from private donors, outside the existing TNZ budget. Travelling professionals, with coaches, physiotherapists and other support staff, face costs of between $100,000-$200,000 annually, though Patterson wouldn’t be drawn on the figures involved.
“That’s a business arrangement,” she said.
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After the offer was put in place, TNZ waited for Sun’s decision.
“You would have to ask her but I know she had a lot to weigh up,” said Paterson. “She didn’t want to let Switzerland down but she also felt at home with New Zealand.”
The choice was eventually made, culminating in that Saturday morning phone call, with her mother, stepfather and agent also on the line.
Sun will make her national debut in the Billie Jean King Cup team in China next month, where the New Zealand squad hope to win promotion from Asia/Oceania Group 1 to the world group playoffs.
Sun could also be at the Paris Olympics alongside Routliffe in the women’s doubles. She will need an exemption from the ITF – as potential Olympians need to compete in at least two national team events (Davis Cup or Billie Jean King Cup), before the process of qualification and selection, within a complex criteria.
“The Olympics is part of the longer term picture though it could happen this year,” said Paterson.
Regardless, the implications of Sun’s switch can’t be overstated. Tennis gets more globally competitive every year and even for cashed-up nations like Australia and Great Britain, producing top-100 players is extremely difficult.
TNZ has poured hundreds of thousands, probably millions, into development over the last 15 years, with rotating strategies and plenty of young prospects who were identified as the next possibility.
So far, no one has cracked it in singles. Of the current crop, Australian-based Monique Barry, 21, showed potential at the ASB Classic but faces a long road, via the lower reaches of the ITF tour, to improve her ranking of 672. Valentina Ivanov, 22, has fallen to 967, while Elyse Tse, 19, Jade Otway, 20, and Vivian Wang, 19 are all outside the top 1000.
Ajeet Rai (585) is New Zealand’s top ranked male, ahead of veteran Rubin Statham (621), KP Pannu (669), Isaac Becroft (852) and teenager Jack Loutit (926).
In contrast Sun is only a few good results away from the top 100 and gets to play at higher level every week. Her progress has been impressive, given she has only featured in the main draw of six tour level events.
“Lulu has a big game with a lot of weapons and she’s got a great team around her who are very driven to work on her areas of growth,” said Bint. “She’s process focused and paying the price with effort day-in day-out. Knowing Lulu she won’t be content with where she is now.”
Michael Burgess has been a sports journalist since 2005, winning several national awards and covering Olympics, Fifa World Cups and America’s Cup campaigns.
The abuse extends to her loved ones, with threats to her family.