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| Last year’s winner, Emmanuel Sylvester could not play this year due to an illness he contracted from Switzerland where he has been on scholarship |
Emmanuel Idoko has won this year’s Chevron Junior Masters Tennis Championship after defeating Niyi Olatunji, in straight sets of 6-0, 6-3.
The American returnee, who was being trained by Jonathan Igbinovia, lived up to his pre-tournament rating as the number one seed as he dispatched Olatunji in less than one hour to emerge the 2014 winner of the tournament.
An elated Idoko told Naija Tennis Special that it is a great feeling to win any tournament, irrespective of how big or small it is.
“The fact that we had an opportunity to play in a competitive atmosphere is the beauty of the tournament and not necessarily the reward for the contest,” he stated.
Speaking also after the event, National Junior tennis coach, Ubale Mohammed, told our correspondent that the sponsors have always done well for Nigerian tennis.
But, he advised them to resume their sponsorship of winners of their championship to Circuits within the continent, to help them garner enough exposure.
“The standard on display this year is higher than what we had last year. The players’ individual displays have improved seriously and that was evident in the outcome of matches.
“And from my observation, the sponsors have stopped their usual practice of sending the winners outside the country for Junior African Circuits.
“I want to sincerely appeal to them, to re-enact that gesture because it has won us a lot of laurels and ranking points in the past,” Ubale stated.
He also added that, “we hope to get more world-class stars from all the junior championships being held in this country, in that way, we will be unstoppable on the continent and even the world at large.”