SAKHIZWE, THANDO RULE JUNIOR TENNIS TOURNEY

KWALUSENI – Thando Bhembe and Sakhizwe Malindzisa reigned supreme in the Fuchs Junior Tennis Tournament that was staged over the weekend.

The two-day event took centre stage at the University of Eswatini (UNESWA) – Kwaluseni Campus tennis court this past weekend. Bhembe and Malindzisa progressed to the semifinals played on Sunday after a successful eliminatory stage played on Saturday. It was Ezulwini Tennis Club’s under-18 male duo of Sakhile Hlophe and Bhembe who met in the final clash and the latter dominated the match, winning 6:0, 6:1 against Hlophe who settled for silver.

Going into the game as the highest ranked player in the girls division, Malindzisa maintained her title and clinched a gold medal after an intense face-off against her colleague Temancele Mavuso. It was a showdown of talent from the Mhlume Tennis Club players under the leadership of coach Gabi Mkhabela. It was a neck-to-neck first set as the pair alternated points but eventually Malindzisa won 7:5 and cemented her dominance with an impressive 6:1 in the final set to become the overall winner.

Medal

In the Under-14s division, Siteki Tennis Club bagged a gold medal through Khayelihle Ndzimandze’s remarkable 6:1; 6:1victory over Tengetile Ginindza. Uviwe Vilakati was crowned the Under-14 champion after beating Siteki tennis player Chris Eziegbo 6:1; 6:1. An ecstatic Malindzisa said; “I want to remain the highest ranked player in the junior’s division. It’s a tough competition but I’m happy that I won. Thank you to our sponsor for bringing us this tournament because it helps us to improve our playing standard and keeps us pre-occupied with a sport keeps us safe and strong,” Malindzisa said. Silver medallist in the Under-18 division, Hlophe, stressed on the motivational role to the younger players. “Since we now compete against the seniors, we share that experience with the young players and I believe that being here and playing against the juniors motivates them to keep pushing for better results,” Hlophe said.

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