After reaching the final of both Girls and Boys’ U-16 events at the Rock Tennis Foundation Junior Championship, Ogun will have to slug it out against Ekiti and Oyo.
The tournament which features some of the best junior talents across Nigeria is in its seventh year, and the competitive nature just got even tougher.
Ogun State’s Ayobami Oduwaye, winner of the Boys’ title in 2024, defeated Elinda Daniel from Ondo State in two straight sets of 6-3, 6-0 to set up a mouth-watering finale against Segun Monday of Oyo State who was the better player when he took on Quzeem Kushimo in the second semis match.
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The lanky player threw all his arsenal on the court when he squared up against Kushimo, aka benben, to take a two set win. The match ended 6-2, 6-2.
While the Boys’ semifinal matches were quite interesting, the Girls’ semifinal matches were electrifying as one of them ate late into the night.
Gloria Samuel from Ekiti State defeated Rokibat Afolabi of Oyo State in two straight sets that looked like a battle of Armageddon.
The first set was decided by a tiebreak which went the way of Samuel, the national U-14 champion, but she made sure to finish off the game in the second set ending the match at 7-6(5), 6-1 to reach the finals of the event.
In the second semifinal match, Ogun State’s Zainab Adisa came out tops in a match where she was least expected to earn a win after losing the first set 1-6 to Sarah Adisa of Ondo State.
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She, however, came out blazing in the second set, and fought her way back into the game with an incredible 7-5 win.
Zainab would later ride on the home support now reaching an all-time high, to take out the more experienced Sarah in the final set which ended 6-4 to a loud cheer inside the tennis section of the Abeokuta Sports Club, venue of the event.
She will have to re-enact the fighting spirit when she plays against another tough opponent in Gloria Samuel for a chance to win the Girls’ U-16 title.
The matches are billed to commence by 2pm on Saturday, 11 January, 2025, and Nigeria Tennis Live will bring you all the updates from the event.