High-class tennis was on show over the weekend as the Tennis Buffalo City-endorsed Mini 3 tournament at Selborne Park.
The exciting event came to an end on Sunday afternoon, with top East London junior tennis player Dylan Smith claiming the win in both the open men’s singles and doubles division.
Sisipho Ndlabhu was crowned champ in the women’s open division, while Luke Taylor won the boys’ U14 division and Devina Pillay the girls’ U12 section.
In the men’s open division top seed Smith backed up his seeding with a solid display, not dropping a set on his way to the title.
He found himself up against number four seed Avela Ndlabhu in the final, and despite a challenging first set, once Smith came through 6-3 he motored away to win the second 6-1 to finish in style.
He also claimed the doubles title with partner Kwanda Mbalekwa, beating Hloni Sodlula and Lihlumelo George 6-2, 7-5 in the final.
“I have been practising and training six to seven days a week following the Djokovic training regimen and it has now paid off,” said Smith.
Avela played some good tennis throughout the tournament, especially in the semifinal where he overcame second seed Mbalekwa 6-4, 6-2 to make the final.
“Dylan played a phenomenal high energy game of speed and power,” said Avela.
The women’s open division saw Sisipho Ndlabhu breeze through the tournament, beating Portia Sangqu comfortably 6-2, 6-2 in the final.
In the U14 boys division champion Luke Taylor proved too much for surprise finalist Jordan Bekker, winning 6-0, 6-0.
Taylor cruised through his opening match before facing a tough test against Matthew Pope, eventually coming through 6-4, 7-5 and was then in imperious form in the final.
Bekker upset number two seed Kiaan Subboo 6-3, 6-1 before following up with a good 6-2, 6-2 win over Oliver Benn, but unfortunately came unstuck in the final.
The U12 girls section went to form as top seed Pillay’s consistency proved itself against the powerful forehands of Enja Jones in the final, winning 6-3, 6-1.
Pillay stormed through her first two matches, losing just one game, before finding a stronger challenge in the final, but came through comfortably in the end.
Jones had a good tournament, upsetting second seed Erin Peters 6-4, 6-1 in her first match, before triumphing 6-3, 6-1 over Leah Jones in the semis, but despite a good fight in the final it proved a step too far.
In all it was a good start for Tennis Buffalo City, hosting their first tournament, and they will be aiming to go from strength to strength when they host their second event in late July.
TBC chairman Neil Naidoo praised the parents, players, officials and the Buffalo City Municipality for assisting in preparing the venue for this inaugural tournament under the Tennis Buffalo City Association.
Young dynamo is the masterblaster at Selborne
The exciting event came to an end on Sunday afternoon, with top East London junior tennis player Dylan Smith claiming the win in both the open men’s singles and doubles division.
Sisipho Ndlabhu was crowned champ in the women’s open division, while Luke Taylor won the boys’ U14 division and Devina Pillay the girls’ U12 section.
In the men’s open division top seed Smith backed up his seeding with a solid display, not dropping a set on his way to the title.
He found himself up against number four seed Avela Ndlabhu in the final, and despite a challenging first set, once Smith came through 6-3 he motored away to win the second 6-1 to finish in style.
He also claimed the doubles title with partner Kwanda Mbalekwa, beating Hloni Sodlula and Lihlumelo George 6-2, 7-5 in the final.
“I have been practising and training six to seven days a week following the Djokovic training regimen and it has now paid off,” said Smith.
Avela played some good tennis throughout the tournament, especially in the semifinal where he overcame second seed Mbalekwa 6-4, 6-2 to make the final.
“Dylan played a phenomenal high energy game of speed and power,” said Avela.
The women’s open division saw Sisipho Ndlabhu breeze through the tournament, beating Portia Sangqu comfortably 6-2, 6-2 in the final.
In the U14 boys division champion Luke Taylor proved too much for surprise finalist Jordan Bekker, winning 6-0, 6-0.
Taylor cruised through his opening match before facing a tough test against Matthew Pope, eventually coming through 6-4, 7-5 and was then in imperious form in the final.
Bekker upset number two seed Kiaan Subboo 6-3, 6-1 before following up with a good 6-2, 6-2 win over Oliver Benn, but unfortunately came unstuck in the final.
The U12 girls section went to form as top seed Pillay’s consistency proved itself against the powerful forehands of Enja Jones in the final, winning 6-3, 6-1.
Pillay stormed through her first two matches, losing just one game, before finding a stronger challenge in the final, but came through comfortably in the end.
Jones had a good tournament, upsetting second seed Erin Peters 6-4, 6-1 in her first match, before triumphing 6-3, 6-1 over Leah Jones in the semis, but despite a good fight in the final it proved a step too far.
In all it was a good start for Tennis Buffalo City, hosting their first tournament, and they will be aiming to go from strength to strength when they host their second event in late July.
TBC chairman Neil Naidoo praised the parents, players, officials and the Buffalo City Municipality for assisting in preparing the venue for this inaugural tournament under the Tennis Buffalo City Association.
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