The Gambia has qualified for the African Junior Tennis Championship finals holding in Botswana in April 2007, after a successful qualifying series held in Abuja, Nigeria, in December 2006.

The up-and-coming Gambian tennis player, Momodou Sonko, will join eleven other tennis players from other sub-regional nations to represent West and Central Africa in the highly-prized competitions.

The Gambia was represented at the Abuja qualifying rounds by four tennis players where both West and Central Africa were present to select the best six tennis players from the U-14 and U-16 categories for the Botswana finals.

Despite the failure of some players to land final spot, prolific Sonko put up a stunning performance that saw him finished one of the best six players in the sub-region. After losing his first match to his Nigerian counterpart, Sonko put up an astonishing performance that saw him thrashed his Ivorian opponent on 6-0, 6-0 to complete the bout.

Speaking to Observer Sports shortly after their arrival from Nigeria, Mr Sulayman Jobe, the head coach of the team said: “We are very much satisfied with the outcome of the qualifying rounds, simply because we secured a place in the finals. Some other countries went with more than eight tennis players, yet they could not secure a single position in the finals.”

Jobe finally commended Slok Air for facilitating their Abuja trip. He also hailed Social Security & Housing Finance Corporation, Gambia National Olympic Committee and Saller Sports for their support.