By Arinzechi Chukwunonso
Yahaya Sani-Inabo advanced to the Round of 16 for the first time at the ongoing VEMP National Open Tennis Championship after a hard-fought victory over Matthew Abamu on Monday in Abuja.
The match, held at the National Tennis Centre, Moshood Abiola National Stadium, saw Sani-Inabo win 6-2, 6-7, 3-0 (retired) in the men’s singles Round of 32.
He started strong, taking the first set 6-2, but Abamu battled back to snatch the second set 7-6 after a tense tiebreak. However, Sani-Inabo regained momentum in the third set before Abamu retired at 3-0, handing him the win.
Sani-Inabo will next face either Endurance Ehiegiamusoe or Ayomiposi Agboola in the next round.
Reacting to his victory, Sani-Inabo said, “It wasn’t easy, but I thank God. I just want to stay focused and take it one match at a time.”
Abamu, who is more known for his doubles performance, admitted it was a tough loss. “I’ve beaten Sani-Inabo before, so I expected a similar result. But credit to him, he played well,” he said.
In other matches:
Lucky Danjuma beat Adehi Ochei 6-3, 6-4
Abua Canice defeated Yusuf Abubakar 6-2, 6-4
Mohammed Musa outclassed Oluwaseyi Ogunsakin 6-2, 6-0
In the women’s category, Bassey Etoro defeated Emmanuella Kelvin-Bebe 6-1, 6-2 to reach the Round of 16.
The tournament, which runs from July 4–12, features 192 players competing in men’s and women’s singles and doubles categorie
