Every now and then, new tennis players get introduced into the beautiful game and they immediately excite spectators. One of such players is Abuja-based Ivana Abu.
The 11-year-old, like many of her contemporaries, had been undergoing series of training sessions with her coach(es) before the opportunity to translate all the tricks and techniques during training presented itself.
The youngster, daughter of respected Nigerian tennis umpire, Rose Abu, was adjudged one of the outstanding players at the Abuja centre of the recently-held TPPA-UTR tennis competition due to her outstanding performance.
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Coach Isiaka Oshioke, the coordinator at the centre, confirmed that she surprised everyone at the event, as she fought her way to the final of her first-ever major competition, a development which raised eyebrows about the player.
The UTR event is one of the many tournaments organized by the Tennis Players Parents Association (TPPA) to unearth new tennis talents and give players the opportunity to play tournaments locally and earn points globally.
After the tournament, Nigeria Tennis Live reached out to her parents to find out how they felt about their daughter’s sudden burst onto the Nigerian tennis scene.
Her dad, Saidu Abu, confirmed that prior to the tournament, “Her target was just to start playing competitions and see where it leads”.
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Fortunately, her first attempt at playing a major event got her to the final of the competition and this has further raised hopes in the supportive dad.
When asked how far he thinks Ivana will go in tennis, he said: “I think she will go far because Ivana is a very dedicated and determined child, she is very hard working and never jokes with her training.
“My wife played tennis to national level, but I see Ivana surpassing her, because Ivana is starting at a good age and she has the advantage of having a mother that played the sport, that will keep her on her toes”.
As as husband to a former national tennis player, Mr. Abu understands what it takes to get a player to reach the highest level and this, he says, they are giving her despite how expensive they might be.
“For now, it’s not difficult supporting her because we run a sports shop (SIVARA Sports) and majority of the kits and equipment Ivana needs are available in our store, we usually discuss and we provide all she needs from the store .
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“The goal is to play as many tournaments as possible, take it one step at a time, put in so much work and effort and see where it leads,” the optimistic father told Nigeria Tennis Live.
As things stand, Nigerians can rest assured that another promising tennis youngster has been birthed through the TPPA-UTR competition which has one more leg before the Nationals in Lagos.
Nigeria Tennis Live will keep up with showcasing many of the youngsters thrown open by the grassroots tennis tournaments across the country.