Africa-Press – Namibia. Namibia’s senior men’s tennis team will be aiming for a stronger return next year after suffering a 3-0 defeat to Estonia in the Davis Cup World Group Two playoff tie on Saturday and Sunday.
Namibia failed to secure a win, as Estonia won all three matches in the tie.
In the opening singles encounter, Namibia’s Steyn Dippenaar went down 6-1, 6-4 to Estonia’s Mark Lajal.
The second singles match saw Estonia’s Markus Molder defeat Codie van Schalkwyk 6-4, 4-6 and 6-4, extending the visitors’ advantage.
Hopes of a turnaround on Sunday were dashed in the doubles match, where Dippenaar and van Schalkwyk lost 6-3 and 6-4 to the Estonian pairing of Lajal and Johannes Seeman, confirming Estonia’s clean sweep in the Group Two playoff.
Despite the result, the Namibian camp remained optimistic about the future.
Speaking after the doubles match, Dippenaar said the team struggled on return, which ultimately cost them the match.
Van Schalkwyk admitted the outcome was disappointing but welcomed the opportunity to play in front of a home crowd and expressed confidence that the team can improve going forward.
Namibia’s Davis Cup coach Gerrie Dippenaar described the campaign as a valuable experience despite the loss.
He noted that the team has much to reflect on and improve while also thanking the Namibian supporters who came out to watch the matches.
He said he hopes to see even greater local support at future ties.
“We are honoured to be part of this, although we did not get the result we were hoping for. For the second consecutive year, we have made it to the world stage. Hopefully, the third time, we will be lucky,” he said.
Namibia will now regroup and fight its way back into the World Group Two playoffs via the Africa Group Three.
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