Barring any unprecedented development, Nigeria’s number one tennis player, David Ekpenyong, will not be playing at the 13th African Games in Ghana.
Ekpenyong, one of Nigeria’s better players at the 2023 Davis Cup qualifiers in Rwanda, confirmed to Nigeria Tennis Live that he is not likely to play at the tennis event of the Games.
The J100 Accra winner is one of the players expected to lead Nigeria’s charge for gold at the week-long tennis event holding in Ghana, West Africa.
In a chat with our correspondent, he stated that he was not allowed to travel for the competition by his school since he is on scholarship and only recently arrived the United States from Nigeria.
According to him: “I’m really sad that I won’t be playing at the African Games because my school did not allow me leave.
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“My coach really wanted me to play at the tournament because I was really looking forward to it, especially because it is a tournament that is held only once in four years.
“But my school wouldn’t permit me to leave because I’ve not been here for too long and I quite understand their worries,”.
Asked how his absence at the Games will make him feel, he said: “The truth is that I was already preparing for the Games. I was training hard for the Games and I really wanted to help Nigeria.
“But there’s really nothing I can do about it with this situation, I’ve already communicated this to the authorities, and I really hope they understand my situation”.
As at the time of filing this report, team Nigeria had yet to conclude on the list of players representing the country at the tennis event of the African Games.
Nigeria Tennis Live will keep tabs on the federation and make an official report on the official list of players expected to prosecute the competition.