Foreign Players Dominate Uganda Open

Hardly two days after her victory in the just concluded 2013 Castle Lite Uganda Open Tennis Championship, Zimbabwe’s Fadzai Nawisire is already talking about defending her titles next year.
The regional tennis event concluded on Saturday with foreign players dominating and walking away with the major trophies.

The men’s and women’s singles were all snatched by foreign players. Nawisire told Uganda Radio Network that she was very delighted having won all the events she entered in the just concluded Castle Lite Uganda International Open.

Shortly before her departure for Harare on Monday morning, Nawisire said she planned to come back to Uganda to defend the title next year.

The Zimbabwean kept her promise and won the women’s title on Saturday at the Kampala Club after humbling Rwanda’s Megdne Ngabire 6-2, 6-1 in a one sided match. Ngabire took the first two games to lead 2-0, but Nawisire later showed nerves to win the game. She later teamed up with Uganda’s Henry Muyanja in the mixed doubles final to beat the Kenyan pair of Ibrahim Kibet and Joie Keter 6-2, 6-1.

In the men’s singles, Rwanda’s Jean Claude Gasigwa captured the trophy he last won in 2009, when he stopped his fellow countryman Daniel Habiyambere 6-4, 6-1 in a game that lasted 1hr 10 minutes. The two players started the first set on a high until Gasigwa broke his opponent’s serve to make it 5-4 and finish off the game. Gasigwa gave Habiyambere no chance in the second set to finish off without too much work.

Uganda’s top player Duncan Mugabe, who fell out at the semi final stage, got a consolation win after pairing with his elder brother Daniel Ruyange to beat Rwanda’s Dieu Donne Habiyambere and Olivier Nkunda 7-6,(6),4-6,7-6(4). John Oduke dominated the veterans’ event winning the singles and doubles.

The tournament ended with some players having their cash prizes deducted by organizers. Cedric Babu, the Uganda Lawn Tennis Association Chairman, said he will investigate the matter because he also does not understand why the tournament directors John Oduke and John Kasule allowed the women’s veterans category to take place yet there were few participants.