Team Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja started campaign for the 2024 Davis Cup Africa Group III Qualification Rounds on a bright note as they stunned their highly rated Zimbabwean counterparts.
Compatriots Emmanuel Michael and Christopher Bulus both created upsets in their first group matches of the round robin against Zimbabwe’s Courtney and Benjamin Lock in the men’s single event.
Zimbabwe came into the tournament as the number one-ranked nation and looked poised to impose their dominance against Nigeria, the least ranked nation out of the six participating countries in the qualifier.
As expected, the Zimbabweans both went on the front foot as they showed class and superiority over their Nigerian counterparts in the first set of encounters.
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Michael had to stage a dramatic comeback from a set down to claim a well deserved 6-2, 1-6, 3-6 victory over Courtney Lock.
It was dejavu for Team Nigeria as Bulus also went down 3-6 in the first set against Benjamin Lock, before finishing strong in the second and third set 6-2, 6-3 to claim a 2-1 victory.
Team Nigeria will face Zimbabwe in the men’s doubles event on Wednesday, as they look to continue on their fairytale winning run.
The 2024 Davis Cup Africa Group III Qualification Rounds which served off on Tuesday with six countries participating, namely: Zimbabwe, Namibia, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Benin Republic and host Nigeria, is expected to end on Saturday.
The teams are ranked based on their international ratings. Zimbabwe is ranked 77, Namibia is ranked 78, while Cote D’Ivoire sit just behind them in 79th position.
Benin Republic is 83rd in the World, Ghana occupies the 89th spot while Nigeria is 92nd in the world.
All six teams are competing for three promotional tickets to World Group II.
While two teams will be relegated to Africa Group IV, one group will remain in Group III after the round of matches.
