The singles finals were held today, on the final day of the international tennis tournament "Ashgabat Open 2024" for boys and girls under 14.
The top two seeds, Ilima Guseynova and Aylara Kakabayeva, were the first on the central court of the Tennis Complex in the Olympic Village of the capital. The day before, these two tennis players from Turkmenistan had won in the doubles category. Now, they faced off to determine who was stronger.
The first set went to Ilima, 6-3. In the second set, with a score of 5-1, Aylara saved one match point but could not save the game.
As a result, 14-year-old Ilima Guseynova climbed to the top step of the podium for the second time in these competitions, while 13-year-old Aylara Kakabayeva earned a silver medal. The bronze went to 11-year-old Turkmen athlete Sulgun Ishankuliyeva, who won against her peer and compatriot Nazli Khudaykulieva in the match for third place with scores of 4-2, 3-5, 5-4.
In the boys' final, there was also no intense struggle. In the first set, Muhammad Hassan Usmani from Pakistan lost only one game to Suleyman Khudaiberdyev from Turkmenistan, winning 6-1. In the second set, with a score of 5-0, he sealed his victory with an ace. Gareth Lim Hao Jae from Malaysia completed the top three by winning against his compatriot Jacob Wong in the match for third place.
Thus, by the end of the four events at the "Ashgabat Open 2024" tournament, our compatriots took eight prize places: three firsts (two in doubles and one in women's singles), four seconds (two each in doubles and singles), and one third (in women's singles).
The award ceremony for the winners will take place this evening at the Tennis Complex in the Olympic Village.
The international tournament "Ashgabat Open 2024" lasted a week and included participants under 14 years old from 12 countries: Great Britain, India, Iran, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.