Nigeria Tennis Live

Tennis

Generation Next: Who Is This Phillips Abayomi?

The recently concluded Zenith Bank Next Generation Junior Tennis Masters has thrown open another junior tennis player, Phillips Abayomi, whom tennis observers will be looking out for in the nearest future.

The unseeded Abayomi who was playing his first ever final match on a national stage, was no match for established junior youngster, Godsgift Timibra, as he defeated him 9-5. This was even after he had created a series of upsets in the round robin games preceding the finals.

Is this the next big thing in Nigerian tennis?

He started a bit tentatively but loosened up and started hitting out when he got the first break to lead 4-2. Riding on the loud support of members of the stadium-based Mainland Tennis Club the ‘revelation’ of the tournament was hardly threatened as he coasted home with the title.


The girls event was easily won by Oyin Quadre, semifinalist in the Girls 16 of the African Junior Championship held in Tunisia early April. Quadre beat Toyin Asogba 9-1 in the final.

The finals which was played before a full arena attracted several dignitaries including Mrs Toyin Hassan-Odukale, a tennis patron, who was special guest of honour.

In her brief remark she acknowledged the enormous tennis talent that abound in Nigeria and urged all stake holders to work harder to take tennis to primary and secondary schools across the nation in order to fish out more talents.

“You never know where the next champion could come from,” she concluded.

All the 16 players where given customised bags and gift items while the winners and runners-up got tennis rackets in addition.

Nigerian Tennis Special will keep tabs on this player and report his progress in tennis to the whole world, maybe he will win us our first grand slam?

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