13-year-old Marylove ready to challenge the seniors

She is just 13 years old, but tough talking Marylove Edwards believes she has the armoury to challenge successfully the senior players in the Nigerian tennis circuit.

Edwards, a finalist in last year’s SNEPCo Junior Tennis Championship, says she has worked hard to be in a position to reclaim the girls’ 14s and 16s titles she lost to Angel Mcleod last year.

“I have made a lot of progress since last year, especially playing against the seniors in the NCC Tennis League. I have more confidence now and I am even looking forward to playing at the senior level,” Edwards, who stands at 4ft 6ins but with the heart of a lioness said.

Edwards will be playing in the 16s and 18s category in the SNEPCo Junior Championship, which starts today at the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club.

The tournament is part of the ITA Junior Tennis Circuit organised by the International Tennis Academy (ITA), which is expecting over 150 players at this year’s event.

“The tournament has attracted a lot of new entries from states like Plateau and Kano. Even more interesting is the fact that the “Almajiri tennis programme,” initiated by the Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF) in Abuja, will be introducing some of their products to a tournament for the first time,” a statement from the ITA said.

The tournament is featuring singles competitions in five age groups – boys and girls 10, 12, 14, 16 & !8s – with the finals slated for Saturday October 17 .