Reports reaching Nigerian Tennis Live have it that Alex Adewale and Wasiu Yusuf, two of Nigeria’s top wheelchair tennis have returned to tennis action inside the tennis section of the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.
According to information obtained by our correspondent, the vice president of the Mainland Tennis Club, Mr. Tochukwu Okeke, put together a mini-tournament for the players to have a competitive atmosphere of their own after years of being in limbo.
The players number about 35, were said to have gathered at the tennis section to participate in the tournament which is a preparatory for the physically challenged tennis players, including Nigeria’s very best hands.
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| Alex Adewale and Wasiu Yusuf are two of Nigeria’s best male tennis players. |
Kayode Savage, the assistant national wheelchair tennis coach told Nigerian Tennis Live that the players are really excited about the prospect of having a tournament to participate in as the dearth of competitions in the country has left most of them match rusty over the years.
“What we need is real sponsorship for wheelchair tennis because these players are really hungry for competition, but we have not had this in so many years.
“This is like an eye opener for prospective sponsors to see the prospects in wheelchair tennis and get on board to finance a regular tournament for these players and see what they are capable of doing and winning for the country on the long run,” he noted.
Nigerian Tennis Live gathered that the tournament will definitely give out prize money to the winners as a way of encouraging them to do more.
“But this is not really the motive. The idea is to give these players a tournament that will get them excited and make them still believe in their abilities and in the sport,” he added.
The three-day tournament which kicked off on Wednesday, 7 February, will end on Friday, 9 February.
Our correspondent will follow up on activities at the competition and publish updates from the tournament as it unfolds.