JACK Cripps has an important role to play at next year's Australian Open.
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He won't be playing, but he will be one of the 380 kids from across the country that are tasked with chasing down tennis balls for the world's best players.
For the second straight year the Girton Grammar student will be an official ball kid for the first Grand Slam of the year.
He said he was looking forward to rubbing shoulders with some of the greats of the game.
"I hope to see Roger Federer this year," the 13-year-old said.
Cripps said as soon as this year's Australian Open finished in January, try-outs to become a ball kid for the 2015 championships began.
He said he underwent a rigorous testing over a number of months in Melbourne, but said it was all worth it.
"I am really looking froward to it," Cripps said.
In the lead up to the Open, Cripps will be involved in a Tennis Australia ball kids training initiative, aimed at fine tuning his skills.
"They (ball kids) provide quality service to international athletes and use their co-ordination, agility and balance to ensure the play runs effectively and smoothly," Australian Open squad manager Tania Hall said.
The championships begin on January 19.