In a bid to further develop the game of tennis, the national tennis federation will soon introduce a ranking structure of players similar to the one used in international competitions.“We will be awarding points to players after every competition and these points will help to seed players, which is crucial in categorising them,” federation chairman Theoneste Karenzi, told Times Sport.Rankings in tennis are used to determine qualification and seeding in all tournaments for singles, doubles and other competitions.Meanwhile, two players; Olivier Havugimana and Ernest Habiyambere, are currently carrying the country’s hopes in the Africa junior Tennis championship taking place in Cairo, Egypt.The African Junior Championships is one of the most prestigious competitions in Africa. Introduced in 1978 to encourage greater competition in Africa, the inaugural African Junior Championships attracted four nations but the event has grown so much that last year, 159 players from 26 African nations took part in the event.The tournament also counts as the African regional qualifying event for the Junior Davis Cup and Junior Fed Cup by BNP Paribas and the World Junior Tennis Competition, the ITF international team competitions for players of under 16 and 14 cadre.This year, there were 288 players from 32 different African countries participating in both the main event and the three zonal Championships.It provides a perfect opportunity for players from different backgrounds to share the experience of competing in one of their continent’s biggest sporting events.
