Khadijat Mohammed and Mary Udoffa will be competing for the prestigious Women’s Singles title at the 2025 edition of the Dala Hard Court Championship in Kano.
For Mohammed, it may seem like another final, after impressive run to the title in 2023, which has taken her to the top two in the Women’s Singles ranking in Nigeria.
Udoffa, on the other hand, will be already over the moon to have reached her first ever national senior final in such a dramatic fashion.
And with the final delicately poised between the Nigerian number two player and the number 12 ranked player, it is important to share a bit of background information about both players.
READ ALSO: Finally! Lagos Set To Host Over 250 Tennis Lovers In Year-end Party
Mary Udoffa
As earlier stated, Udoffa, who started her tennis journey nearly a decade ago, would have already been over the moon to have reached the final of a senior national tournament for the first time.
Her progress has been astounding as it has been refreshing, as she has taken all her steps one at a time, before reaching this stage, including winning the 2024 edition of the Zenith Bank Next Gen Junior Tennis Championship in Lagos.
She has played in, and won a number of national junior tournaments across the country, and has been consistent on the national circuit. Udoffa reached the final by winning two tough matches; she defeated the nation’s number five player, Favour Moses, as well as the youngster who ousted the tournament’s number one seed.
If there’s anything, she does not seem like a push over in the finale, as she earned her spot in the final by doing justice to her matches which were not easy in any way.
However, her opponent is one player who knows how to deal with anyone she is up against whenever she is on top of her game, so, it is yet to be seen how that would pan out for the 19-year-old.
READ ALSO: Wimbledon: Coach Paul, Ndukwu, Aluko, Chang Invited To Train At All-England Club
Khadijat Mohammed
If there’s any player who stands a chance of dominating Nigerian tennis for a long time – as long as she’s on the local scene – then you can count on this ferocious player. She’s bold, tough, and combines her combative forehand with a bit of consistency on the court on her day.
Mohammed is the second-highest ranked Nigerian junior player on the female ITF rankings and has repeatedly represented Nigeria in junior championships outside the country.
Her recent performance at the Ghana Junior ITF tournament further raised her rankings but it was her big win at the 2023 Dala Championship that called a big attention to her, even though she did not make a big deal out of the win.
Like Udoffa, Mohammed has not dropped a single set all week, and she rightly deserves her spot in the final because the players she overcame were not small fries.
READ ALSO: Top 5 Most Talked About Nigerian Tennis Players In 2024
She must now be ready to face Udoffa who, unlike her, has the ability to attack whenever she chooses to, and defend till the end of a point, no matter how long it takes.
What Nigerians can be assured of, however, is a spectacular game of tennis between two ladies who can wear the crown as the ‘next big thing’ in Nigerian female tennis.
But from what you know about either of them and what you have seen of them so far, whom do you support to win this battle of the future? Please share with us in the comments.