The Red Clay of Central Africa

11:58 AM EST on February 25, 2022

By Neil Munshi
All photographs by Neil Munshi

[vc_empty_space height="35px"]

This week, a dispatch from Our Man in West Africa.

[vc_empty_space height="45px"]I stumbled upon the Tennis Club de Bangui last fall, when I was in the Central African Republic reporting on Russian mercenaries that have waged a brutal campaign across the country on behalf of the C.A.R. government. The club is just around the corner from the presidential palace, in the lush foothills of the capital, Bangui. The courts were in fine shape and the clubhouse looked like it'd been painted yesterday—a perfectly preserved art deco(ish) jewel.[vc_empty_space height="45px"][vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"]

[vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"]

[vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"][vc_column width="3/4"]

[vc_column width="1/4"][vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"][vc_column width="1/4"][vc_column width="3/4"]

[vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"][vc_column width="3/4"]

[vc_column width="1/4"][vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"]

[vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"][vc_column width="3/4"]

[vc_column width="1/4"][vc_row full_width="stretch_row_content"][vc_column width="1/4"][vc_column width="3/4"]

[vc_empty_space height="45px"]Neil Munshi is the West Africa Bureau Chief for the Financial Times. He did not encounter Boris Becker in the Central African Republic. [vc_empty_space height="45px"][vc_row full_width="stretch_row"][vc_column width="1/6"][vc_column width="1/6"][vc_column width="1/6"][vc_tweetmeme share_via="racqetmagazine"][vc_column width="1/6"][vc_facebook type="button_count"][vc_column width="1/6"][vc_column width="1/6"][vc_empty_space height="45px"][vc_column width="1/4"][vc_column width="1/2"]

SUBSCRIBE TO RACQUET

[vc_btn title="SUBSCRIBE TODAY" style="outline" shape="square" color="success" size="lg" align="center" button_block="true" link="url:https%3A%2F%2Fshop.racquetmag.com%2Fproducts%2Fsubscribe|title:SUBSCRIBE%20NOW||"][vc_column width="1/4"]

Racquet

Stay in touch

More from Racquet

Features

Rafa Returns, in Four Parts

RAFA, a four-part documentary on the most reserved member of the Big Three, is out on Netflix. By director Zach Heinzerling, the series airs a side of Rafael Nadal that he rarely showed during his 24 years on the pro tour, but that many of us suspected, or hoped, was there all along. Racquet sat down with Heinzerling to talk about his unprecedented access, and how he was able to tease out the Rafa we now find on the screen.

May 29, 2026

Features

ACE: Form and Function of Tennis Wear

In her new book, ACE: the times & style of tennis, creative director Sunita Kumar Nair delves into the history of tennis clothing, and what makes the court a de facto runway.

May 28, 2026

Features

My Love-Hate Relationship with the French (Open)

There is a simple explanation for why Roland-Garros has so often decided to go its own way: because France thinks it is the best at everything.

May 22, 2026

Features

Rafael Jódar Isn’t Waiting for Anyone

Sinner and Alcaraz have split the last two calendar years of Grand Slams and counting, and have set themselves scarily far apart from the rest of the pack. But beneath their momentous, center-stage war, another is incubating.

May 18, 2026

Features

Only the Most Tenacious Thrive on the Terre Battue

Rolex Testimonees Garbiñe Muguruza, and last year's women's singles champion Coco Gauff reflect on what it takes to lift the Suzanne-Lenglen trophy at Stade Roland-Garros in Paris.

May 18, 2026