Junior Benjamin was crowned the winner of the open men’s singles defeating Raynal Singh 4-1 in the final, while Sina Izumi won the women’s category, at the Vodafone Suva Tennis Open Championship yesterday.
Praful Prabhu also triumphed in the final of the Over-45 Men’s Singles category, where he overcame Massimo Camassei with a score of 8-3.
“I’m so glad at this age, I can still win,” says Prabhu.
Reflecting on the competition, Praful noted the increase in competition levels and the large number of participants, which he found to be a positive development.
“It was a great competition, I’m so surprised that at this age I can still win, looking at the competition at level has gone up, which is good, a lot of participants so its really good,” said Prabhu.
Praful credited his success to the rigorous training he underwent prior to the championship and the unwavering support received from his Victoria Tennis group team.
“I had a lot of hard training before coming into the competition and a lot of support with my Victoria Tennis group team, so thats what keeps me going.”
He recalled his past accomplishments, mentioning his Junior Champion titles in the Under-13 and U16 categories in Nadi.
After a hiatus of 38 years, Praful returned to tennis after spending time in Australia and has continued to excel in the sport.
Expressing his gratitude, Praful dedicated his victory to his family and friends who have been a constant source of support and motivation.
Meanwhile, in other final results: U14 Boy’s Single Uraia Ratu 8-5 Liam O’Donell, U16 Boy’s Rezwan Khan 8-3 Ziqi Gao, U14 Girl’s Singles Alexandria Chand 8-5 Tabhita Speed, Social Women’s Singles Emily Wilson 8-4 Beatrix Ecube, over 45 Singles Praphul Prabhu 8-3 Massimo Camassei, Open Women’s Sina Izumi 4-9 Tarani Kate, U16 Girls Single Davina Mailtorok 8-2 Malia Bossley.
