Nigeria’s tennis team to the 13th African Games in Ghana could be weakened by the absence of one of the country’s key players.
David Ekpenyong, Nigeria’s number one player ruled himself out of the Games after his school in the United States refused to grant him permission to represent his fatherland.
Ekpenyong, one of Nigeria’s better players at the 2023 Davis Cup qualifiers in Rwanda, confirmed to Nigeria Tennis Live that he was not likely to play at the tennis event of the Games.
The J100 Accra winner is one of the players expected to lead Nigeria’s charge for gold at the week-long tennis event holding in Ghana, West Africa.
Ekpenyong stated that he was not allowed to travel for the competition by his school since he is on scholarship and only recently arrived the United States from Nigeria.
“I’m really sad that I won’t be playing at the African Games because my school did not allow me leave. My coach really wanted me to play at the tournament because I was really looking forward to it, especially because it is a tournament that is held only once in four years.
“But my school wouldn’t permit me to leave because I’ve not been here for too long and I quite understand their worries,” David said.
Asked how his absence at the Games will make him feel, he said: “The truth is that I was already preparing for the Games. I was training hard for the Games and I really wanted to help Nigeria.
“But there’s really nothing I can do about it with this situation, I’ve already communicated this to the authorities, and I really hope they understand my situation.”
Nigeria had yet to conclude on the list of players representing the country at the tennis event of the African Games.
