Sarah Adegoke: Teen tennis sensation and her Grand Slam dream

This is exactly how 17 year old Sarah Adegoke, the current Nigerian number one female tennis player, got into the game against her wish but now that things are looking good for the Ibadan based player, she is setting her sight on playing in one of the Grand Slams in tennis.She believes that given the […]

This is exactly how 17 year old Sarah Adegoke, the current Nigerian number one female tennis player, got into the game against her wish but now that things are looking good for the Ibadan based player, she is setting her sight on playing in one of the Grand Slams in tennis.
She believes that given the right training and exposure, she would work hard to become the first Nigerian woman to feature in one of the Grand Slams. Consequently, her dream is to proceed to the United State of America where she hopes to combine the game of tennis with academics.
“I want to play in one of the grand slams. US Open, Australian Open or French Open. That’s my dream and I believe I can get there. No African has played in any Grand Slam but if supported, I can get there.
“I do not know where the confidence is coming from but I know that if I am encouraged, I will get there. Even if I do not leave Nigeria but I am encouraged with good coaching and everything, I can reach that height.
“It will be a lot easier if I go to a country like the USA. They have schedules for tennis and academics and other stuffs. It will be easy there but here in Nigeria it will be very difficult. If you want to play tennis and go to school, you have to go to places like the USA where you will have time for studies and tennis.
For now, Sarah is concentrating on her game so as to retain the number one position. She is confident that as long as she is in the country, she will remain the number one player. She knows it will take hard work. Consequently, her immediate target is to win the singles and doubles event at the ongoing Nigeria Ports Authority Tennis Championship in Abuja to bolster her chances of retaining her number one position.
“I am here to win both single and doubles so as to maintain my ranking. At the moment, I am the number one. I became the number one after this year’s CBN Open. I want to maintain the position as long as I remain in Nigeria and as long as I continue to play tennis. My dream is to go abroad but for now, I am here and I want to remain the best.
Although determined to remain the best in the country, the major hurdle in her path is lack of sponsorship. She said for now, she depends on her father and other well meaning Nigerians.
“I get sponsored by my dad, his friends and sometimes the tennis federation. In fact I have people who are always ready to support me but it is not enough because these are individual efforts. I haven’t got a major sponsor. And that is what I am praying for.
“I am appealing to the corporate world to come to our aid. They should try and help people like us, especially junior players. We need sponsorship. We need to go for more tournaments. If they sponsor us, we would do Nigeria proud. Personally, I want to be a grand slam player”.
Apart from sponsorship, Sarah who is a fan of Serena Williams is not happy with the number of tournaments available for Nigerian tennis players. She believes more tournaments would help improve the performances of the players who are usually out-played by their foreign counter-parts at every given opportunity.
 “I like Serena Williams. Even now that she is getting older, she still plays fantastic tennis. I want to play like her and to do so I know I have to leave Nigeria. Here there are no tournaments and no sponsorship for me. There is nothing. We are supposed to be better than this. Look at us. These whites shouldn’t come and be beating us anyhow. We are also talented.
“It is worrisome that we don’t have tennis academies. I think the only one we have is Abe Live here in Abuja and I think it is only for boys. I will be happy if we have more tennis academies. Even if there are tournaments every month, tennis players would improve more. Most Nigerian players do not practise always because there are no tournaments. They look for other ways to earn a living and start training only when there are tournaments”.
Although coached by her biological father, Mr Adedapo Adegoke, who is not a trained tennis coach, Sarah said she enjoys working with him because he is patient with her and ensures she is always happy.
“It’s ok working with my dad but he is not a trained coach. He didn’t go to any coaching course. He just likes tennis. So when I was given birth to he was like I will teach her how to play tennis. He reads magazines to get the techniques and just tells me what to do.
“No, he does not put me under pressure. I feel very free with him which is what I really really enjoy about him. He is very free and patient with me”.
Sarah also said her forehand is her weapon on court but insisted she is not allowing her success so far to get into her head because she has a long way to go to realise her dream.
“It is my forehand. My forehand is good and strong. Everybody knows that it is my forehand. It has given me many victories. I started representing Nigeria since 2010 and I have not looked back. In as much as I am doing well, I am not going to rest on my oars. I will keep doing my best. I still have a long way to go,” she noted.