For the first time in history, Turkmen tennis players won today against the team of Uzbekistan at the ongoing Asian championship among boys and girls under 12 years old in Ashgabat, the website "Turkmenistan: Golden Age" reports.
For many years, the national team of Uzbekistan was considered an insurmountable rival for Turkmen tennis players. No matter what tournaments of different ages these teams met, the Uzbeks always took the top. And now this sad tradition for Turkmen tennis has been broken. And it was violated by three young athletes who are not yet 12 years old. The heroes of the fourth gaming day at the tournament held in the Olympic Village were Ashgabat residents Suleiman Hudayberdiyev, Nazargeldy Amangeldyev and Ali Geldyev, a pupil of the Turkmenabat tennis school.
In the first single meeting, Ali Geldiev crushed Artyom Contractov, giving him only one game in two sets - 6:1, 6:0. In the second singles, the first number of the Turkmen youth team Suleiman Hudayberdyev, who trains at the Olympus tennis club in the capital, also confidently defeated Islomjon Tursonov - 6:1.6:2, providing the team with an early victory.
Having achieved the desired result in single matches, the captain of the men's team of Turkmenistan at the championship of Central Asia (U-12), the first rocket of the country, Yuri Rogussky, made a substitution in the doubles match, giving Nazargeldy Amangeldiyev, a pupil of the Ashgabat tennis academy, a chance to prove himself in a duet with Ali Geldyev.
In the first set, the Uzbek couple, consisting of Kamranbek Tokhirov and Artyom Contractov, took the lead 2:0. However, then Yuriy Rogusskiy's wards turned the tide of the game, took six games in a row and brought the set to victory - 6:2.
In the debut of the second set, the Turkmen team stunned the opponents, taking a 3-0 lead. However, then they relaxed a bit, allowing the duet from Uzbekistan to equalize the situation - 3:3. In the future, the game was held with the advantage of the Turkmen pair, which did not allow the Uzbeks to win back a single match point, winning in the second set - 6:4.
Having won a victory over Uzbekistan with a total score of 3:0, the youth of Turkmenistan climbed to second place in the standings, and now they have a chance to win silver medals in the Central Asian championship for the first time. To do this, it will be enough for Turkmen tennis players to defeat the team of Tajikistan on the final day of the tournament.
As for the women's team of Turkmenistan, today it lost to rivals from Uzbekistan - 0:3 and now on the last game day at the tournament it will compete with representatives of Tajikistan for bronze medals, which are also claimed by tennis players from Kyrgyzstan. And the gold medals in the girls' competition will be played in a face-to-face meeting between the teams of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
For the second time, Turkmenistan hosts the regional tournament held under the auspices of the International (ITF) and Asian (ATF) tennis federations. Four years ago, at the same championship of Central Asia in Ashgabat, the Turkmen teams of boys and girls took third place.
