Cooper wins KCB Open, Gasigwa lauded for effort

KCB Tennis OpenFinalA. Cooper (Ken) bt M. Dzuwa (Zim) 6-3, 7-6

Sunday, March 01, 2009
MUST KEEP HIS HEAD HIGH: Jean Claude Gasigwa

KCB Tennis Open
Final
A. Cooper (Ken) bt
M. Dzuwa (Zim) 6-3, 7-6

Despite his semi-final exit in the just ended KCB Tennis Open, Jean Claude Gasigwa’s efforts did not go unnoticed.

The country’s tennis ace pocketed Frw 140,000 for his efforts but more importantly, received lots of applauds from the Kenyan crowd.

Before Saturday’s 4-6, 4-6 semi-final loss to defending champion Martin Dzuwa, Gasigwa was the only play that had not dropped a set in the lucrative tournament.

"I did not see him play in Kigali and Kampala but he played ok here (Nairobi),” the tournament’s referee Samuel Kipkoech said. Kipkoech also expressed his satisfaction with the level of tennis exhibited in the Open.

"There is no doubt that the level of tennis in the region has gone up. However, the lads need more tournaments to even get to a much better level,” he conceded.

Meanwhile, Kenya’s Allan Cooper gave the local crowd something to smile about after yesterday’s 6-3, 7-6 victory over Dzuwa. After the win, Cooper bagged US$1052 while Dzuwa settled for a consolation US$592.

Ends