Tiffany William is a Nigerian-born British tennis star, who started playing at the age of 9. She obtained a tennis scholarship in January 2012 to further her education in USA.
She graduated from the University of Middle Tennessee in December 2015 with a Bachelors degree in Psychology. In 2017, she joined the tour full time and following some good wins, accrued some WTA Singles and Doubles ranking points.
The youngster who was at the 2017 edition of the Governor’s Cup Lagos Tennis Championship for the first time, has expressed her excitement and determination to make good impact in the Lagos Open Tennis this year.
Below is an excerpt from the interview she granted recently:
 |
| Tiffany William of the United Kingdom will be staging a return to Lagos for the Lagos Open Tennis Championship. |
The Governor’s Cup Lagos Tennis Championships, now Lagos Open Tennis Championship is around the corner – holding between 29 September and 13 Oct, how are you preparing and what are your expectations in the competition?
Yes, I am looking forward to playing the Governor’s Cup again this year. I had a great experience last year making my first pro final in the Doubles and am eager to have such highs again. I am preparing as I would for any tournament; practicing rigorously five days of the week. I have no expectations in terms of how far I expect to go in the tournament as I do not like to put too much pressure on myself however I do have specific performance goals for myself.
Have you been able to meet up with 20 tournaments target you set for yourself this year?
I have not played up to 20 tournaments this year yet. However, I have had some of my best results this year really pushing myself mentally on the court when faced with challenges and the efforts are beginning to bear fruit.
You were at the Governor’s Cup last year, where you got to the women’s doubles final in Futures 5, but you partnered, Tadeja Majeric to lose to the pair of Conny Perrin of Switzerland and Valeriya Strakhova of Ukraine. Will you still pair with Majeric this year and if she doesn’t come for the tournament, who will you look up to as doubles partner?
I do not know whether Tadeja will be playing the tournament again this year but I have already arranged to play with Paulina Jastrzebska from Poland with whom I won my first Doubles title in June of this year. Hopefully we can relive some of the good moments we had then again in Nigeria.
How many times have you come for the ITF Futures and how has the tournament impacted on your career especially on your level immediately you leave Lagos for another event each year?
This will be my second time at the Governor’s Cup as last year was my first. Last year, after the tournament I had some of my best results of the year in singles; yes, the tournament definitely had a positive impact on my level of play. Making the final also gave me a lot of confidence and showed me that I am more than capable of competing at that level.
The organizers have changed the name of the competition to Lagos Open International Tennis Championship with a plan to transition it to Challenger Series very soon. How do you feel about this?
I think this is a great move as tennis is undergoing change, so it makes sense that the organizers also want to move forward as well. It will definitely attract more high-ranked players to compete and consequently improve the quality of the competition thereby help to further put Nigeria on the tennis map.
After your first time in Nigeria, what memories did you leave Lagos with?
Well, it was my first time in my native Nigeria so that experience alone was one that I will always cherish. I was able to meet some family members for the first time and they were also able to watch me play for the first time. Also, making my first pro final of course was another highlight. I met some wonderful people at the tournament who were helping out or part of the organization, which as a whole contributed to making it an amazing first experience.
Do you see any area you think the organisers of the Lagos Open Tennis should look into to improve on the organisation of the ITF Futures.
It would be great if the women’s event could also include hospitality like the men’s as this would make the tournament more inviting.