Nigerian youngster, Emmanuel Jebutu, was the talk of the town following a 6-1,6-0 crushing of Bhanu Suthar of India as the qualifying round of the Lagos Open served off on Monday, at the Lagos Lawn Tennis, Onikan, Lagos.
Making his debut at a senior international tournament, Jebutu was at his best form brushing side the Asian in less than an hour.
“I
did not believe I could give somebody 6-1, 6-0 in a tournament of this
magnitude, even though it’s a qualifying match. To beat an Indian in my
first ever match in the Lagos Open is something I’ll love to cherish.
I’ll now focus on the second round of the qualifiers and hope to go even better in the next phase.”
While
Jebutu had a smooth sailing to the second round, it was not the best of
performance from Sylvester Emmanuel, the Nigeria Tennis Federation
top-ranked player wobbled through to the second round with a 6-3, 6-1
win over compatriot Godsgift Timibra.
The Port
Harcourt-based Kodian Tennis Foundation player showed some promises with
Emmanuel showing poor form as highlighted by the series of unforced
errors.
The rustiness of the top Nigerian
players was reflected in Thomas Otu's exit at the hands of Emmanuel Oche
who won 5-7, 6-2, (14-12).
Other winners of the first round qualifiers are Amaud Sewanou of Benin,Darryl Hale of Great Britain, Alexey Dubinin of Russia, Mohammed Mohammed, Mathew Abamu both Nigeria,
The
Women’s singles qualifiers were also played with Netherlands Emma van
Popple, Sarah Adegoke, Aanu Aiuegbusi, Blessing Anuna, Serena Teluwo,
Omolade Aderemi among those that progressed to the next round.
The second round matches hold on Tuesday, while the Main Draws (Singles and Doubles) also start on Tuesday.
