Satisfied with children embracing tennis, a national coach, Rotimi Akinloye, has called for more collaboration between the Nigeria Tennis Federation (NTF) and the private sector to promote the sport, especially at the grassroots.
Akinloye told newsmen recently in Lagos that if concerted efforts were made to catch-them-young for the sport, the country’s woes in international competitions would be stemmed.
He said that it was unfortunate that Nigeria which had produced renowned world greats like Nduka Odizor, Sule Ladipo, Tony Momoh and Sadiq Abdullahi was no longer reckoned with.
Tidesports gathered that recently, other tennis players done the country proud include Clifford Enoseregbe, a gold medalist at the 2011 African Games in Maputo, Mozambique.
Michael Moses is the first Nigerian in recent times to win the abridged 2014 Governors Cup Lagos Tennis and is currently the highest ranked player in the country.
Another budding player, Christian Paul, won gold medal at the last National Sport Festival in Lagos, tagged “Eko 2012’’.
Also, Russian-born youngster who represented Nigeria at an U-18 tournament,  Melisa Ifidzen, before coming up with the shocking win at the women’s final of the CBN Open.
Akinloye said that it was becoming common in the country to spot children gather to play tennis during and after school hours just as football.
He told newsmen that the development spurred him to enroll coaches for the International Tennis Federation (ITF) National Level One Training Course to help to improve the game.
“I went to get certified as a coach and I chose to make it easier by helping coaches who cannot travel far and probably do not have the funds to pay to get the certification.
“I observed that tennis is no longer vibrant but that lately, young ones gather themselves after school hours to engage in the sport.
“I was equally amazed by what they were doing and was inspired to groom them because they need to learn the fundamentals of tennis to become world beaters.
“Usually, it’s either football or other ball games that children give much attention to, but in recent times, I noticed that some young lads have separated themselves from these prominent sports.
“I took my time to observe them and I noticed that they really want to become tennis stars but don’t know the fundamentals and how to channel their energies to achieve their ambition.
“It then occurred to me that I must make extra effort to upgrade my coaching skills and that of other coaches to be acquainted with the current techniques to identify these young ones.’’
He pleaded with the NTF to give more attention to local tennis competitions to create an enabling atmosphere for young tennis players to exhibit their skills and get discovered.
According to him, lack of funds is a major challenge denying tennis associations the opportunity of organising grassroots competitions for players in their states.