WTT Feeder: Omotayo, Mati face Portugal, Sweden opponents

Olajide Omotayo and Taiwo Mati were handed a tough task in the first round of the men’s singles of the WTT Feeder Vila Nova de Gaia taking place in Portugal.

Omotayo and Mati are both returning to WTT Feeder Series after their outing at the African Championships held last September in Tunis and they will commence their campaigns from the main draw.

Omotayo, 2019 African Games champion and semi-finalist at the 2023 African Championships, will face Swedish southpaw Kristian Karlsson, an integral member of the Swedish team. Mati will face a huge task against Portuguese star Tiago Apolonia, a strong member of the Portuguese team regarded as one of the most intelligent players in Europe.

A determined Mati told NationSport that he would try his best against the homeboy.

"It is not going to be easy but I will try my best because he is one of the best players in the world in the past and he is still playing well at his age,” he said.

Pavilhao Desportivo Municipal de Vila Nova de Gaia hosts the 13th stop on this year’s WTT Feeder Series, with WTT Feeder Vila Nova de Gaia 2023 with all eyes on Portuguese star Marcos Freitas, who returns home on a mission.

The 35-year-old is the standout name at the top of the Men’s Singles draw, and will take some beating as he goes in search of his second WTT title of the year, three and a half months on after doing the business at WTT Contender Lima.

In the Women’s Singles draw, former African champion Dina Meshref of Egypt topped the entry list in Vila Nova de Gaia.

The World No.28’s best performance of the year at a WTT event was a quarterfinal finish at WTT Contender Durban in January, a result she will be keen to better in Portugal.