BTA reflects on J60 and J100 tournaments
04 Dec 2025
ennis in Botswana is currently gaining significant momentum and traction, thanks to the foundational work of the older generation who paved the way for the young players.
Not only is the young generation making strides and making tennis attractive, but they have also placed the country in a better position to be granted rights to host high-profile tournaments.
The past two weeks saw Botswana hosting two international junior tennis tournaments that attracted participants from Canada, Hong Kong (China), France, Great Britain, Serbia, Greece, Portugal, Czech Republic, India, Thailand, Egypt, Namibia, South Africa and, of course, Botswana.
The two events were a great success, given the global reach and diversity of the participants attracted, the high level of tennis displayed, the number of local players in the main draw as well as the performances of some of local players. A total of 17 Botswana players made it into the main draw of the J60, consisting of eight girls and nine boys.
The Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) leadership is surely happy, given that this is a substantial number of players who ordinarily would not have contested in an international event, had the BTA not hosted the tournament, as tennis is inherently expensive.
In an interview, BTA vice president, Nonofo Othusitse, said this substantiated their position that hosting such events was critical for providing an opportunity and platform for their players.
Othusitse said it also provided players with the much-required exposure to international-level play, which resulted in an improved level of play and, consequently, improved international rankings.
Talking about rankings, he highlighted a huge jump in the rankings from a number of players, such as Ntungamili Raguin, who broke into the world’s top 200 with a current ranking of 167.
Othusitse also applauded Angel Chakanyuka, who won her first J100 match and earned 10 points, placing her at 2 906 in the world at just 13-years-old.
“We also have 13-year-old Malak Macheng at 2 036, while Nina Sekonopo rose to 1 412. A special mention should also go to the Re Ba Bona Ha Serowe Centre product, Kgosi Tometso, who also received his maiden ranking at 4 245. I think his story will inspire a great number of kids from that centre,” he said.
The greatest success of the two events will obviously have to be the back-to-back singles title wins by Ntungamili, as well as the boys’ doubles J30 title win and the silver medal in the J100.
In that regard, Othusitse said such were amazing performances and achievements by Ntungamili and the BTA awaited the entries for the 2026 Australia Open Junior Championships with bated breath.
He also noted that a number of Under 14 players who were part of the two tournaments generated a lot of interest.
“This includes the likes of Rerotlhe Kgannyeng, Tinashe Phatshwane, Malak, Angel and Kgotso Kejakang. Next year, more Under 14s are expected to start competing in the World Tennis Tour Juniors, so one might confidently conclude that we will have an even more competitive number of players by this time next year,” he said.
Consequently, Othusitse highlighted the need for resources in order to effectively provide the required support towards junior talents.
“We therefore make a call to corporate Botswana to join other corporates such as Choppies, Senn Foods, Spar and Gaborone Electronics to become Botswana tennis development partners,” he said. ENDS
Source : BOPA
Author : Anastacia Sibanda
Location : Gaborone
Event : Interview
Date : 04 Dec 2025
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