The NCC Tennis League lived up to its billing and the
expectation of tennis followers with the excitement, passion and intensity the
ties played in four different centres across the country generated. The eight
teams featuring a good spread of all the top tennis players in the country were
on parade in Asaba, Onitsha, Abuja and Abeokuta. All centres attracted large
crowds.
Austin Okocha returns the ball at the launch of the
NCC Tennis League in Lagos.
In Abeokuta, Team Ogun featuring two top 10 players
overwhelmed the young CBN Futures side made up of top junior players. The
overall score did not however tell the story and the young CBN side had a lot
of positives to take away from the encounter.
In the ladies singles, Angel Mcleod the national
junior champion won the first set against Ronke Akingbade, the 2015 CBN Senior
Championship ladies singles winner but finally lost 4-6, 6-4, 7-6. In the mixed
doubles Marylove Edwards 13, pairing another junior Michael Michael played a
close first set against Monday Igbinovia and Akingbade who won 7-5, 6-3.
The close ties, as envisaged, were those between hosts
Team Delta and Team Tombim from Abuja and Team Kalotari playing away to Team
FCT in Abuja.
By the end of the first day’s matches Team Delta and
Team Tombim were all square at 2-2. Christian Paul for Tombim beat Candi Idoko
6-4, 4-6, 6-2 and Albert Bikom levelled by defeating Henry Atseye 6-4, 6-4.
National No.2 female player Sarah Adegoke then nudged Tombim ahead by beating
Ann Okoro 6-2, 6-1. Again, Bikom winner of the CBN Senior Championship doubles
with Sunday Maku paired Idoko to beat Paul and Onyeka Mbanu 4-6, 6-2,
10-6(tiebreak decider).
However on the final day, Team Tombim introduced their
star player, Moses Michael, who beat Bikom 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 to set the stage for
his team to take the next two points for an overall 5-2 win.
It was a similar story on the first day of competition
in Abuja where 19 year-old Emmanuel Sunday playing for Team FCT beat Musa Bala
of Team Kalotari to give his team a head start but former national No.1 and
current doubles champion, Sunday Maku restored parity with a close 5-7, 6-4,
6-3 win against another youngster Emmanuel Paul.
Team Kalotari then won the next two points with Aanu
Aiyegbusi continuing her dominance of former national champion Blessing Samuel
with a straight sets victory and the pair of Maku and Bala easily winning the
doubles. The Kalotari team took the reverse singles in very tight three set
matches, dropped the final mixed doubles match to the FCT but still emerged
comfortable 5-2 winners.
The star studded Civil Defence team did not drop any
points against Team Anambra at the Onitsha Sports Club but the
spectators had a lot to cheer as their players went down fighting. In the
ladies singles, Lovett Donatus played a close first set against national
champion Christie Agugbom then succumbed 7-5, 6-0.
The mens doubles between Babalola Abdulmumuni and
Shehu Lawal against Nnaemaka Achusim and Augustine Nwokedi of Team Anambra was
also fairly close with the Civil Defence team winning 6-1, 7-5. Team Anambra
gave their teeming fans hope of snatching a point when the pair of Achusim and
Stella Udokwelu took the first set off Agugbom and Lawal but the
champions rallied back to win 4-6, 6-2, 10-5(tiebreak decider). The four singles
matches were easily won by Babalola and Nonso Madueke.
Overall, it was a great start for a brand new tennis
league which is taking top class tennis to different parts of the country and
attracting the right sponsorship for the players. The next set of round robin
matches has been scheduled for the third and fourth weekends of July, right
after the Muslim fast.
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