AFTER a fruitful week in Senegal where he won the Dakar Open doubles tennis title and reached the singles final, Zimbabwe’s number one tennis player Takanyi Garanganga will be hoping to continue his fine form when he takes part at the Togo Open in Lome this week.
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The Togo Open which is an ITF Pro Circuit event has a prize fund of $15 000 will be held on the outdoor courts at the Togo Tennis Federation Club from today to Sunday. Garanganga, who is the fifth highest ranked player in the field heads to Togo on the back of an impressive week at the Dakar Open in Senegal.
The 24-year-old Mbare-born star together with his South African playing partner Keith-Patrick Crowley beat Frenchmen Tom Jomby and Mick Lescure 6-2, 6-4 in straight sets to win the doubles title of the Open De Dakar tournament last Friday.
The doubles win was Garanganga’s second doubles title on the ITF Futures Circuit after his maiden win at the Guatemala F1 Futures in 2011.
Garanganga, the All Africa Games gold medalist had a chance to put the icing on the cake by winning the singles title, but he came just short succumbing to a 6-4, 5-7, 2-6 loss to Belgium’s Alexandre Folie on Saturday.
The Togo Open presents a golden opportunity for Garanganga, who is currently ranked 388th in the world to earn some precious world ranking points as he squares off higher ranked opponents.
Spain’s Enrique Lopez-Perez, who is ranked 229th in the world in the highest ranked player in the Togo Open field, followed by Frenchman Josselin Ouanna who has a world ranking of 352.
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34-year-old Ivo Klec from Slovak Republic, who has a world ranking of 366, is expected to be the fourth seed while Spain’s Jaime Pulgar-Garcia (371) is the fourth highest ranked player in the tournament.
