It is said that those who want to be ranked among the best tennis players in the world, must start learning the trade from the age of five or at most age of seven.

In most part of the world, the  message has not only been well received, but has been put into action as could be seen in the case of the United States of America Williams sisters, Venus and Serena or even British Andy Murray to mention just few.

But sadly enough, it was a different ball game in Nigeria   altogether as those who would have been making waves in the game just like their counterparts in other countries  keep fizzling out for lack of encouragement. This was the hallmark of Nigeria Tennis until central bank came to  rescue.

Having  realized that Nigeria as Country, has the potential to produce  world  beaters in Tennis, the CBN decided to sponsor the annual Junior Tennis circuit which has been on for some years now. And by so doing the apex bank has been Championing the course of developing tennis in the country through the sponsorship of the annual CBN Junior circuit which is the bedrock of Nigerian Tennis development.

GREATER TOMORROW.... Eight year old Oyinlomo Quadre Barakat turned out to be the giant killer in the just concluded Junior Tennis Circuit in Lagos. She is among the young players who dismissed older players and showed potential to be a future champion. Photo: Sylva Eleanya

Apart from sponsoring and orgainsing annual competition for the Junior Tennis kids in Nigeria, CBN has  also been involved in ensuring that those who excel in the game locally are allowed to advance their skills in international competitions  across the continent .

And for five good years of continuous  sponsorship of this tournament, the level of competitive tennis at the junior level in Nigeria has improved tremendously as those involved leave no stone unturned in their quest to win having realized that there lies brighter future ahead since participants are usually positioned for bigger and brighter challenges after each tournament.

In addition to winning prizes, champions and indeed participants at the annual CBN Junior Circuit are usually spoilt with gift items like Tennis Rackets, Balls, Tennis bags, Canvass, Towels and T-shirts among others, that would enhance their training.

Stakeholders of the sport including managers, coaches, umpires and even ball boys  who are also beneficiaries of the CBN largesse that follows the championship  annually are of the opinion that the CBN is really putting their money where  their mouth is .Having applauded the sponsorship of the tournament, the stakeholders  prayed that the Junior circuit be allowed to continue more so when the CBN has gone a step further by introducing more benefits into the championship like the international tournament sponsorship.

Above all, the 2011 edition that  was held from May 2-8 which is the 5th in the series, did not fall short of expectation considering the fact that over 350 tennis playing kids drawn from both public and private schools across the country  featured in the weeklong  exercise where little Oyilomo Quadre and Micheal Oshewa became the toast of Tennis lovers who besieged  the Arena to cheer the kids.

Apart from providing an enabling environment for Nigeria Junior Tennis players to exhibit their skills, the programme which is fashioned out in the mode of the Bank of Scotland tournament that produced Andy Murray who is No.4 in the world has been spotted as the major tournament that  is discovering future Tennis  champions for the Country for the simple facts that products of the circuit have always been representing Nigeria in International competitions. A good case is the just concluded African Junior Championship held in Botswana where winner of the U-18  girls Category Afolarin  Akosile and runners up of the boys U-18 class.

Emmanuel Idoko who lost to Christian Paul in the final, featured prominently.

And to attest to the standard of the CBN Junior circuit, her product, Emmanuel  Idoko has since been selected among the African  best players picked by the International Tennis federation to play some tournament in Europe  starting from July this year.

The success has given rise to the unprecedented number of players that turn out at every edition.
Besides its position as the only tournament that feeds the CBN Senior Open Tennis Championship, one of the biggest tennis tournaments in the country today with players, the CBN Junior Tennis circuit remains the only programme that provides tournament  in the boys U-10,U-12,U-14,U-16 and U-18 categories as well as girls U-10, U-12,U-14,U-16 and U-18 categories at  a programme as witnessed recently thus providing the players the needed opportunity to display their skills.

Even at that, almost all the players that have featured in CBN Junior Circuit in the past, are already making waves and challenging their senior counterparts  in the CBN Senior Open Tennis tournament. And that informs why the championship has been ranked as the numero uno in West Africa by the ITF.

That may have influenced the decision of the management of the CBN to continue the sponsorship of the programme in a remark made by Mr.Faruk Garko, Director Governor’s Department, Head of Cooperate Affairs who was represented by Deputy Director Ifechukwu Anthony during the closing ceremony of the just concluded 2011 edition. However  that Terry Dias of India beat Jebutu Emmanuel to win the U-10 Boys, Michael Oshewa defeated John Dickson to emerge winner in the boys U-12, Biodun David outclassing Olumide Ayoola to pick the U-14 Boys title, Michael Michaal beating Sylvester Emmanuel to claim the U-16 Boys title, Christian Paul to have defeated hard fighting Emmanuel Idoko to cart home the boys U-18 title and Afolarin Akosile emerging champion in the Girls Open category by beating little but promising Oyinlomo Quadre is indeed good news for the players.

But the most cheering news is the lifeline that CBN is providing for  these players as no less than eight of them have been selected as members of the CBN Tennis Futures Team.

The players include Christian Paul, Moses Michael, Samuel Mmoile, Emmanuel Idoko, Onyeka Mbonu, Sylvester Emmanuel and Edward Christopher.

Meanwhile, the President of the Nigeria Tennis Federation, NTF Sanni Ndanusa who is also the President of the Nigeria Olympic Committee, NOC has commended the CBN for the annual sponsorship  of the Junior Tennis circuit where future tennis stars are discovered annually. He wondered the type of  challenges the tennis federation world have been facing in trying to discover new talents for the national teams if not for the junior tournament like the  annual CBN circuit.

He urged parents to encourage their children to participate in the tournament  which not only serves as a breeding ground for the country’s future tennis stars but has positioned itself as the tonic needed for the development of tennis both in Nigeria and the West African sub- region.

To the players, the tournament is like a dream come true as it has not only provided them the opportunity to display their tennis skills, but has equally helped in exposing them.

For instance, little Terry Dias from India who won the Boys U-10 category said “I play well when I see a lot of people applauding me when I make  good moves and win a point”.

Michael Oshewa who dismissed John Dickson in the boys U-12 Class, said the just concluded CBN Junior circuit  pushed  “me into bringing out the best in me. I have never played so well in my life since I started playing tennis. The crowd who trooped to the arena to watch  the final  match between me and John Dickson were responsible  for this and that was why I could not help but pay them back by dazzling them with my dancing steps after winning the match at 9-8.

It was a hard  fought battle no doubt but the crowd gave me victory because of their cheers”. “The game could have gone either way more so when my opponent was not only older than me, but is also more experienced in the game”.

For Oyinlomo Quadre Barakat, the CBN Junior Tennis circuit is the best Tennis Tournament she has witnessed.
According to the 8 year old girl who was forced to play her senior colleagues like 16 year old Esther whom she defeated in the second round, 16 year old Victoria Peter whom she outclassed in the quarter final stage and Blessing Hope another 16 year old player whom she sent packing 9-2 in the semi-final before falling to the superior fireworks of   Afolarin Akosile in the final of the girls open category, the CBN junior circuit  gave her the first opportunity to  be interviewed  by journalists which wouldn’t have been possible if not for the CBN junior tennis championship. And for Idoko who just returned from Botswana where he featured in the African Junior Tennis Championship, “ playing the CBN Tennis is the same thing as playing in the Africa Junior Championship  because of the quality oppositions it presents”.

“Imagine me coming back from an African Championship where I featured prominently and played well to earn an ITF invitation to play several tournaments  in Europe from July to August this year only to be beaten at the just concluded CBN junior circuit. It shows one that the standard is indeed high. I am indeed very pleased to be part of it”.