BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
ZIMBABWE’S leading junior tennis player Thabo Ncube clinched his first International Tennis Federation (ITF) Junior Circuit title with a 6-4, 6-1 win over compatriot Ethan Sibanda in the final of the ITF 18 and Under South Central tournament at Bulawayo Country Club yesterday.
The win in the singles meant 17-year-old Ncube, who trains with Pro World Tennis Academy in Florida, USA, completed a double in the highly competitive tournament after partnering Tatenda Mutetwa to win the doubles title.
Ncube and Zimbabwe-born Mutetwa, who competes under the South African flag, beat the pair of South African Andres Scott and Tinashe Taruberekera 6-3, 6-7(5) [10-6] in a tightly contested doubles final.
Tennis Zimbabwe administrator Cliff Nhokwara said Ncube’s victory completed a successful week for Zimbabwe after three local players made it into the semi-finals of the ITF Grade 5 event, which carries crucial world ranking points.
“We are obviously very delighted with Thabo Ncube’s victory and also the fact that we have three Zimbabweans who reached the semi-finals while two of them progressed to the final, which is a sign that our junior players are performing well,” he said
Ncube’s win, Nhokwara said, further underlined his status as the country’s leading junior, which merited his selection as the fifth player in the Davis Cup team, that will face Romania in a Europe/Africa Group II tie next month.
“As you know, Thabo was selected to be part of the Davis Cup team due to his position as the leading junior player in the country and his victory should be a morale booster. He will obviously learn a lot from being part of the Davis Cup team which includes Takanyi Garanganga, Mehluli Sibanda and the Lock brothers Benjamin and Courtney,” Nhokwara said.
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While Ncube won the boys’ title, Zimbabwe did not fare too well in the girls’ category, with Claire Machisa finishing as the best-placed local player after reaching the quarter-finals where she succumbed 3-6, 1-6 to South African Jessica Portwig.
Laureen Cooper of the USA clinched the girls’ singles title after 6-1, 6-0 win over Tshegofatso Tsiang from Botswana.
Cooper also partnered with her compatriot Dakota Fordham to win the girls’ doubles title after a 6-3, 6-2 victory over the doubles pair of Zimbabwe’s Tsitsi Mahere and Victoria Sasinka from the USA.
