The second edition Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Tennis Cup -NCC Tennis Cup – will commence in May 2016; this is even as the Commission has upped the overall winner prize money from N5million to N7 million.

A statement issued by the Public Affairs Director of NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo, explained that the competition managed by the International Tennis Academy (ITA) will consist of round robin group matches leading to semi-finals and finals with each tie featuring two men’s singles with reverse, one ladies’ singles, one men’s doubles and one mixed doubles.

One of the highpoints of this second edition is the increase in prize money which was promised towards the end of the maiden edition last year by the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Professor Umar Danbatta.

In the second edition, the winning team will go home with N7million up from N5 million while the runner-up will cart away a goodly N5million. Third and Fourth place winners will go home with N3million and N2 million respectively.

According to the statement, the objectives of the competition include:

• To positively engage tennis players and provide a platform to improve and showcase their talent;
• Build interest in the sport and raise the standard of the game in Nigeria
• Contribute to the spread and growth of the sport by taking top level tennis to all parts of the nation;
• Give recognition to top tennis players through prize monies and empower them to launch professional careers overseas;
• Attract sponsorship to teams which then trains as squads with professional coaches; and
• Promote healthy competition in the game of tennis across the country.

The competition is open to teams from clubs, states, companies and institutions, the statement said.