I Want To Retire As An Actor

pmnews-placeholder

One of Nigeria’s star performers at the recently ended 12th Governor’s Cup, Monday Igbinovia, tells DAMILARE OKUNOLA how he started playing lawn tennis and his future ambitions.

How do you always feel being a relative of Nigeria’s former tennis star, Jonathan Igbinovia?

Well, it gives me some sort of challenge because of his achievements while playing for Nigeria. He’s my uncle and he was the one who made me chose tennis as a career. I also modelled my game after his style of play.

Can you tell us how you started playing tennis?

Actually, I started playing tennis while I was as a ball boy at the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club. I think I was 8 years old back then. I used to watch a lot of tennis stars when they play at the club and that was how the interest started. And the fact that I was watching my uncle (Jonathan) play along with other stars gave me the confidence that I could play tennis to the highest level.

Have you ever regretted pitching tent with the racquet game?

Not at all. Playing tennis has been good for me and honestly, the foundation I had in the game gave me an edge over my colleagues. Though I’ve not been lucky at tournaments but I am confident of myself that on a good day that I would deliver.

What are the highlights of your career so far?

I have a lot of them especially when I was playing the Juniors. I would say the NNPC/Chevron Junior Masters, UNIPETROL All Secondary Schools tournament and so many others that I can’t remember now. In the Senior category, I’ve played at different ATP tournaments, the Port-Harcourt Open, Ogbe Hard Court tournament and of course, the Governor’s Cup.

Which tournament would you rate as the most challenging so far?

Related News

It was the Ondo State Governor’s Cup held in Akure in 2008. I got to the semi final only for me to lose the match when I thought I had the chance of winning the tourney. It was really challenging for me because I played against a stronger opposition.

What are the benefits of playing in this year’s Governor’s Cup?

I did gain a lot playing at this year’s Governor’s Cup, especially from the American player who defeated me in the second round of the qualifiers. He was very consistent and very patient. These are qualities that most foreign players exhibit when they come here to play which I hope to add to my game. I also hope other Nigerian players would learn from it too. Though this year’s Governor’s Cup wasn’t as high as the last edition in terms of quality of players that attended the championship but I still think it was good for Nigerian players that played.

Why is that most Nigerian tennis players are not featuring in international tournament to improve their ranking?

It’s all boils down to the issue of funding. So many of us want to play in international tourneys but there is no sponsors to fund us for such trips. It’s always a big challenge for an average Nigerian tennis player to get a sponsor for international tournaments. I hope very soon I would be able to get one.

Did  you get your parents support to play tennis?

Of course, they did. The reason being that my Dad is a former tennis player and when he saw the passion in me quickly gave me his full backing.

Do you have role model in the game of tennis apart from your uncle?

Roger Federer is my role model. This is because of his achievements and outstanding qualities on and off the tennis court.

Load more