Oman players reach semis in Arab veteran tourney

Muscat, Jan 6 - Oman’s veteran tennis players secured spot in the semifinals in singles and doubles competitions of the seventh Arab Veteran Tennis Championship which is underway in Muscat until Wednesday. Oman team representatives in singles and doubles team including Hamood al Zadjali, Majeed al Asfoor, Salim Abubaker, Mohammed al Amri and Mohammed Salim advanced to the semifinals. In the 70 years category, Oman’s Majeed al Asfoor and his team-mate Abdul Hakeem Abdul Ghaffar outplayed Libyan doubles team of Faisal Adil and Zwai Abduladi 4-0, 4-2. In the 65 years category, Oman’s team of Hamood al Zadjali and Mukhtar Hassan edged past Jordanian duo of Amro Asef and Nabil Khalil (4-0, 5-3, 7-2) after a tough match.

Salman al Balushi[/caption]

The third day of the top senior Arab veteran tennis competitions featured participation of 150 players from 15 nations.

Oman’s Hamood al Zadjali impressed also in the singles as he beat Jordan’s Abdul Hakeem Alawi in a three-setter. In the 35 years doubles, Mohammed al Amri and Abdullah Salim advanced to the semifinals as they defeated double team comprised of Jordanian Mohammed Ali and Syrian Emad Fanzouh 4-1, 4-1. In the 55 years level, Salim Abubaker and Ahmed al Saeedi snatched a crucial win against Ahmed Sabri and Said Alian from Jordan. In the 35 years singles, Abdullah Salim secured a spot in the semifinal as he beat Bahrain’s Khalid Janahi 4-1, 5-4.

The Sultanate’s Ahmed al Saeedi reached quarterfinal after outplaying Iraq’s Mohammed Fakhri 4-0, 4-0.

Oman’s Majeed al Asfoor was satisfied after winning in the doubles. “It was good start to win in the doubles category and I am looking forward to register more wins with my team-mate in the upcoming rounds,” he said.

On the other hand, Salman al Balushi, Executive Director of Oman Tennis Association (OTA), affirmed that the OTA supports any event in tennis which can add technical value to the sport in the Sultanate. “We are providing full technical and logistical support to the seventh Arab Veteran Tennis Championship. It is one of the essential tennis events that feature 150 players from 15 countries and great that Muscat is the destination to gather all the Arab veterans here. We had a close coordination with the Arabian Tennis Veteran Union to host a successful event,” he ended.