Kenya made an impressive start as the team event of the East Africa Tennis Championship kicked off Friday at the Gymkhana Club in Dar es Salaam.
In the boys’ 16 and under, Duncan Accouche of Seychelles fell to Kenya’s Edmond Ogega. Ogega had won the opening set 6-2 before his opponent retired in the second set to hand the Kenyan the win.
Ogega’s high start proved to be a motivation to his compatriot Brandon Isami schooled Sresht Venkatakrishnan beating him 6-3, 6-3, giving Kenya a 2-0 lead before the doubles.
Later in the doubles match, Accouche and Venkatakrishnan gave a walk over to the Isami, Ogega pair handing Kenya an easy 3-0 win.
In another contest, Burundi hammered Eritrea 3-0 with the duo of Akbar Gatoto and Mussa Kashidi outclassing Eritrea’s Awet Uqbay and Yonathan Sium 6-0, 6-0 and 6-2, 6-1 in the singles and 6-3, 6-1 in the doubles.
Seychelles’ woes continued in the boys 14 and Under with Rwanda clinching a 3-0 victory over the islanders.
Rwanda’s Emmanuel Manishimwe beat Carpede Jean-Marc of Seychelles 6-2, 6-3 and Junior Hakizumwani thrashed his Seychelles opponent Matteo Lavigne 6-0, 6-2 in the singles, before they won 6-0, 6-3 in the doubles.
In the girls’ 14 and Under, the Kenyan team borrowed a leaf from the boys 16 and Under to secure a 3-0 win over Comoros.
Narya Moistafa of Comoros suffered in the hands of Kenya’s Mercyline Oresha losing in two unchallenged sets of 6-0, 6-0 while Moinafatma Mahamoud endured the same against Kenya’s Faith Urasa.
The impressive duo later wrapped their final match against their opponents beating them 6-1, 6-3 in the doubles.
In other girls’ 14 and under matches, Rwanda managed a 3-0 win against Eritrea. Rwanda’s Rona Tutishime beat Eritrea’s Heyab Sium 6-0, 6-4 while Carine Nishimwe beat Saron Asmelash 6-2, 6-1 before winning 6-4, 6-0 in the doubles.
In the boys’ 14 and Under, Kenya’s Ruinclife Ominde and Liberty Baraka lost 2-1 to Burundi’s Allan Gatoto and Abdoulshakur Malick.
Ominde beat Malick in two sets of 6-1, 6-4, while Baraka lost 6-0, 6-0 to Gatoto in the second singles match before the Burundian duo beat them 6-2, 6-2 in the doubles.