Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, 09 January: Tanzania Junior tennis team is bubbling with confidence ahead of East Africa Junior Tennis Tournament that will roar off this Sunday at Dar es Salaam Gymkhana Club Tennis Court.
A member of Tanzania technical staff and some of the team players have declared that they will not walk from the tournament with a wooden spoons but honours and have promised to take the competition by storm.
Assistant Coach, Majuto Majaliwa who has been drilling the team alongside National Coach, Nicolas Jonas since Tuesday this week is optimistic that the country’s players will register positive results during the tournament.
His confidence derives from the availability of four players currently at tennis academies in United Kingdom, Morocco, Burundi and South Africa.
A member of Tanzania technical staff and some of the team players have declared that they will not walk from the tournament with a wooden spoons but honours and have promised to take the competition by storm.
Assistant Coach, Majuto Majaliwa who has been drilling the team alongside National Coach, Nicolas Jonas since Tuesday this week is optimistic that the country’s players will register positive results during the tournament.
His confidence derives from the availability of four players currently at tennis academies in United Kingdom, Morocco, Burundi and South Africa.
Majaliwa told the country’s online English Daily published Friday that the four; South Africa based Kemmy Kaindoah, Morocco based Omary Sulle, UK based Mandi Furuji and Burundi based Emmanuel Mallya are all currently enjoying rich vein of form.
“We are so happy with the current team that boast four players who are studying outside the country and are all in good form,” said Majaliwa.
However, he added that locally based players are also poised to cause tremors at the tournament.
“The local players are also good and well trained. We have a very strong team and we hope they will perform better this year,” he added.
Female tennis star Kemmy Kaindoah who is currently at a tennis academy in South Africa declared that she is fit and ready for the challenge because of technical capability she gained there.
She described the experience she gained in the Rainbow nation as very good experience.
“It is even tougher compared to what I was used to in Tanzania. It’s so different as a lot of juniors take part in the sport there,” she said.
She also said the tactics learnt from South Africa will be topped up by what she has learnt the time she has been in camp locally.
With much of the spotlight and expectation falling on the foreign based players, the responsibility to salvage the pride of local players will fall on the shoulders of Hassan Mamis.
Mamis who will compete in the Under 14 category had a lacklustre performance in last tournament also declared that he is ready for the showdown and will make amends for the last year last year event.
“I could not do so well last year as that was my first tournament and the weather also affected my performance a lot. But I will not let it go this time around, I’ve trained hard and am ready,” he declared.
The tournament will attract 72 boys and girls in the age range category of Under 16, 14 and Under 12 and will be played in both singles and doubles.
Eight countries namely; Kenya,Burundi,Rwanda,Ethiopia, Sychelles,Sudan,Comoros and hosts Tanzania are expected to take part in the weeklong event that will run from 11 to 19 January.
“We are so happy with the current team that boast four players who are studying outside the country and are all in good form,” said Majaliwa.
However, he added that locally based players are also poised to cause tremors at the tournament.
“The local players are also good and well trained. We have a very strong team and we hope they will perform better this year,” he added.
Female tennis star Kemmy Kaindoah who is currently at a tennis academy in South Africa declared that she is fit and ready for the challenge because of technical capability she gained there.
She described the experience she gained in the Rainbow nation as very good experience.
“It is even tougher compared to what I was used to in Tanzania. It’s so different as a lot of juniors take part in the sport there,” she said.
She also said the tactics learnt from South Africa will be topped up by what she has learnt the time she has been in camp locally.
With much of the spotlight and expectation falling on the foreign based players, the responsibility to salvage the pride of local players will fall on the shoulders of Hassan Mamis.
Mamis who will compete in the Under 14 category had a lacklustre performance in last tournament also declared that he is ready for the showdown and will make amends for the last year last year event.
“I could not do so well last year as that was my first tournament and the weather also affected my performance a lot. But I will not let it go this time around, I’ve trained hard and am ready,” he declared.
The tournament will attract 72 boys and girls in the age range category of Under 16, 14 and Under 12 and will be played in both singles and doubles.
Eight countries namely; Kenya,Burundi,Rwanda,Ethiopia, Sychelles,Sudan,Comoros and hosts Tanzania are expected to take part in the weeklong event that will run from 11 to 19 January.
By: Joel Chirwa
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