ZIMBABWE’S highest-ranked tennis player, Takanyi Garanganga has endured a disappointing season on the professional circuit, but will be hoping to finish the year on a high when he takes part in back-to-back ITF Futures tournaments to be held in Lagos, Nigeria, starting next week.
BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
Injuries have plagued Garanganga this year, with the 25-year-old US-based star now ranked 436 in the world after reaching a career high-ranking of 288 in 2014.
Garanganga has just one win to his name this year — the USTA Pro Circuit Long Beach Futures title — and will head to Nigeria with high hopes of adding to his current career haul of six ITF Futures singles titles.
The Zimbabwe Davis Cup team star will first line up in the Nigeria F3 Futures tournament set for December 7 to 13 immediately afterwards taking part in the Nigeria F4, which runs from December 14 to 20.
Both tournaments, which carry $15 000 money funds, will be held at Lagos Lawn Tennis Club.
According to the list of final entries for the two tournaments, Garanganga is the third highest ranked player, in the field for the first tournament behind Bosnia and Herzegovina player Aldin Setkic and Spain’s Pere Riba.
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Setkic, who is ranked number 231 in the world, is the highest-ranked star in the tournament, while Riba has a world ranking of number 246.
Sadio Doumbia of France (441), Antal Van Der Duim from the Netherlands (444), Michael Mmoh of USA (455), Lloyd Harris of South Africa (492) and Karim-Mohammed Maamoun of Egypt (506) complete the top eight seeds for the tournament.
Garanganga is one of the key members of the Zimbabwe Davis Cup team, which was recently drawn to face Finland away in the opening round of the 2016 Davis Cup Euro/Africa Zone Group Two in March next year.
