Van Schalkwyk (15) crowned senior women's champion at NTA Masters
Tennis
The country's elite tennis talent stepped into the limelight last weekend to determine the cream of the crop.
Windhoek Afrikaans Private School’s 15-year-old Mari van Schalkwyk was the outstanding senior women’s contestant at the Namibia Tennis Association (NTA) Senior Masters Championship last weekend.
The year’s sixth tournament, an invite-only men’s and women’s event, brought together the country’s top players.
Three women – Van Schalkwyk, Joanivia Bezuidenhout (15) and grand masters legend Amanda van Dyk (68) – battled in a round-robin format, while eight male players competed in head-to-head elimination for the national title.
Senior women
To become the country’s senior women’s top-ranked player, Van Schalkwyk opened her campaign on Friday against Van Dyk, owner of the Kiddies Sport program, winning 6-1, 6-2.
On Saturday, she faced Bezuidenhout in the final, emerging victorious with a 6-2, 6-2 score.
Van Schalkwyk was delighted at her achievement, pointing out her excitement for the upcoming Junior Masters tournament, scheduled for the weekend after next, where she will be aiming for her second overall trophy.
“I’ve been looking forward to this tournament and winning it feels amazing! I trained harder this week and it paid off,” she remarked.
Home-schooled Bezuidenhout, a four-time Masters winner, will also compete in the Junior Masters after settling for second place, having won her match against Van Dyk on Friday, 2-6, 6-4, 6-0.
Senior men’s finalists
The men’s singles, which only reached the semi-final stage last weekend, saw top seed Kendall Swartz triumph over Elias Shikongo 6-0, 6-1 to secure a place in next weekend’s finals.
Reflecting on his achievement, Swartz acknowledged the high level of competition put up by the juniors, delighting at his favourable early draws.
“I am glad I have the finals to look forward to. I will make sure to spend more time on the court to prepare. I will stretch and work on my fitness to make sure I can last for the final, because it is going to be a tough one,” he noted.
Joining Swartz in the finals will be Zambian national Dickson Phiri, who ended Oscar Muyambo’s challenge in a three-set thriller, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Phiri, nicknamed “Azzie”, admitted that Muyambo gave him a run for his money on the court. “He tried his best to beat me, but I played some solid tennis, ultimately making it into the finals,” he said.
Like Swartz, Phiri admitted that the finals would not be an easy feat, emphasising that he plans to spend more time on the court to deliver his A-game.
The other four invited men's players that were eliminated before the semi-finals were Lorenzo Danster, Patrick Paulus, Ronaldo Uirab and 12-year-old prodigy Johan Theron.
Theron won hs match against Uirab, but lost to second-seeded Shikongo and number three Phiri.
Tournament organiser, Larushka Kruger, expressed satisfaction with the level of competition.
“We had some good matches, with quite a numer going to three sets. Winning this tournament counts for double the normal rankings points, which is significant because it sometimes allows players to move up two to three positions.
“If you're already ranked number one and win, you’ll remain the top player for the entire year, making this a very important event for 2024,” Kruger said.
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The year’s sixth tournament, an invite-only men’s and women’s event, brought together the country’s top players.
Three women – Van Schalkwyk, Joanivia Bezuidenhout (15) and grand masters legend Amanda van Dyk (68) – battled in a round-robin format, while eight male players competed in head-to-head elimination for the national title.
Senior women
To become the country’s senior women’s top-ranked player, Van Schalkwyk opened her campaign on Friday against Van Dyk, owner of the Kiddies Sport program, winning 6-1, 6-2.
On Saturday, she faced Bezuidenhout in the final, emerging victorious with a 6-2, 6-2 score.
Van Schalkwyk was delighted at her achievement, pointing out her excitement for the upcoming Junior Masters tournament, scheduled for the weekend after next, where she will be aiming for her second overall trophy.
“I’ve been looking forward to this tournament and winning it feels amazing! I trained harder this week and it paid off,” she remarked.
Home-schooled Bezuidenhout, a four-time Masters winner, will also compete in the Junior Masters after settling for second place, having won her match against Van Dyk on Friday, 2-6, 6-4, 6-0.
Senior men’s finalists
The men’s singles, which only reached the semi-final stage last weekend, saw top seed Kendall Swartz triumph over Elias Shikongo 6-0, 6-1 to secure a place in next weekend’s finals.
Reflecting on his achievement, Swartz acknowledged the high level of competition put up by the juniors, delighting at his favourable early draws.
“I am glad I have the finals to look forward to. I will make sure to spend more time on the court to prepare. I will stretch and work on my fitness to make sure I can last for the final, because it is going to be a tough one,” he noted.
Joining Swartz in the finals will be Zambian national Dickson Phiri, who ended Oscar Muyambo’s challenge in a three-set thriller, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.
Phiri, nicknamed “Azzie”, admitted that Muyambo gave him a run for his money on the court. “He tried his best to beat me, but I played some solid tennis, ultimately making it into the finals,” he said.
Like Swartz, Phiri admitted that the finals would not be an easy feat, emphasising that he plans to spend more time on the court to deliver his A-game.
The other four invited men's players that were eliminated before the semi-finals were Lorenzo Danster, Patrick Paulus, Ronaldo Uirab and 12-year-old prodigy Johan Theron.
Theron won hs match against Uirab, but lost to second-seeded Shikongo and number three Phiri.
Tournament organiser, Larushka Kruger, expressed satisfaction with the level of competition.
“We had some good matches, with quite a numer going to three sets. Winning this tournament counts for double the normal rankings points, which is significant because it sometimes allows players to move up two to three positions.
“If you're already ranked number one and win, you’ll remain the top player for the entire year, making this a very important event for 2024,” Kruger said.
– [email protected]
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