A year ago, Botswana men’s tennis national team suffered a heartbreaking defeat in the hands of Gabon in the Davis Cup Africa Group V. The narrow defeat saw Botswana fail to get promotion to Group VI in a tournament hosted in Gaborone, their own background.
So near, yet so far! That was the overwhelming feeling back then. Fast forward a year later, Botswana has gained promotion to Davis Cup Africa Group V. the promotion was won is style this past Saturday with a 2 – 1 win over Madagascar.
The win capped off a fantastic week in the middle of the hard courts for Botswana. As it was a year ago, Botswana got off to a flier in the pool or group stages. They were placed in Pool C alongside Congo, Ethiopia and Lybia.
Botswana started their campaign with a 3 – 0 win over Lybia. Botswana’s hopes were always going to rest on the performances of 16-year-old Ntungamili Raguin and the now experienced Denzel Seetso. The latter was the highest ranked player in the tournament.
As expected, it was Raguin who got Botswana rolling with a 6 -2, 6 -1 win over Ibrahim Shtiwe. Seetso then followed it up with a 6 – 2, 6 – 3 win of his own against Ahmed Mouhan, before Mark Nawa and Tsholofelo Tsiang beat a Lybian pairing of Safwan El Zeyadi and Mouhan 6 – 4, 6 – 3 to give Botswana a great start to the games.
The second outing was against Congo. Here again, Botswana went on a 3 – 0 routing, without even dropping a set. Tsiang got Botswana bouncing with a convincing 6 – 0, 6 – 0 win over Michael Bolidard Ibakakomboyo-Ayessa before Nawa won by the same scoreline against Cheik Pandzou Ekoume. Raguin and Esl Molefe then wrapped the game for Botswana with a similar scoreline against the Congolese pair of Ekoume and Camille Henry Boboua.
The group stages were clinched without losing a game on the third day with another 3 – 0 win, this time over Ethiopia. Raguin got Botswana started with a 6 – 1, 6 – 2 win over Yabets Kebede, followed by Nawa with a 6 – 0, 6 – 1 win over Dawit Sheleme Musa. Seetso and Molefe then wrapped up all the points for Botswana with a 6 – 3, 6 – 4 win over the pair of Kebede and Abdella Nedim Mohammed.
Botswana’s group stage win then saw them pass through to the promotional play-offs on Saturday, where they faced Madagascar, winners of Pool B. Again here, it was Raguin who got Botswana to a flying start. The teenager swatted of Madagascar’s Lucas Andriamasilalao 6 – 3, 6 – 2 to give Botswana an upper hand. Things however did not go well in the second match as Seetso lost 4 – 6, 6 – 4, 3 – 6 to Valentin Rakotondrasoa.
This left Botswana and Madagascar tied at 1 – 1. Battle lines were drawn. Now, it all boiled down to the doubles match to decide who proceeds to Group V alongside Mozambique, who had gained promotion earlier with a 2 – 0 win over Rwanda. Pressure was mounting!
Perhaps with a full knowledge that Seetso was knackered after his prolonged three set battle with Rakotondrasoa, coach Thabo Matong opted for the teenage pair of Raguin and Nawa to take Botswana to the promised land. Madagascar on the other hand opted for Rakotondrasoa along with the much experienced 37-year-old Antso Rakotondramanga. In a high-pressure match, the two teenagers proved their mettle and paid the trust coach Matong had on them.
In the first two second serves of the first set, none of the teams seemed at an advantage. Until the second serve, they were locked at 2 – 2 and looked set for a prolonged tit for tat match. Things however changed in the third set. Botswana’s pair of Raguin and Nawa held their serve to lead 3 – 2 before breaking Madagascar’s serve to take a 4 – 2 lead, thanks partly to an error prone Rakotondrasoa who committed two double faults, one of them crucial to sealing Botswana’s 4 – 2 lead. Unfortunately, Botswana failed to hold their next serve, allowing Madagascar to cut their lead to 4 – 3. Botswana however broke Madagascar in the next serve before holding their own to clinch the first set 6 – 3.
Things however got trickier in the second set. Botswana found the going tough as they quickly trailed Madagascar 0 – 5 in what was threatening to be a one-sided affair. Botswana’s slump left their vociferous supporters stunned. The ghosts of the year gone-by, when they narrowly lost promotion were seemingly coming alive. Backs on the rope, Raguin and Nawa regrouped and won the next two serves to cut the deficit to 2 – 5. It was however too little too late for any feasible comeback and Madagascar duly won the second set to tie the score and send the game to a third and deciding set.
Despite Madagascar serving first, Botswana’s teenage pairing fought hard to break their opponents and take the lead. They then raced to a 4 – 0 lead before Madagascar reduced the deficit to 4 – 1. That was however as good as it got for Madagascar as Raguin and Nawa went on to clinch the set 6 – 1. The win sent Botswana’s players and supporters into a frenzy!
Ghost of the past year laid to rest! Promotion to Group IV achieved. They were back to where they rightfully belong. Now, the plan will be sustaining their stay in Group IV and then gaining promotion to Group III. And with the rising talent like Raguin and Nawa to partner with the likes of Seetso, Botswana, Botswana can dream.
