Post by : Shakul

Turkmenistan’s U16 tennis team has departed for Kazakhstan to participate in the final qualification round of the Junior Davis Cup 2026. The tournament will be held in the city of Shymkent from May 18 to May 23 and will feature 16 of the strongest junior teams from across Asia and Oceania.

The Turkmen team secured its place in the final qualification stage after delivering an impressive performance in the preliminary qualifying tournament held in Colombo, Sri Lanka, earlier this year. Their achievement marked one of the best performances by a Turkmen junior tennis team in international competition.

The preliminary qualification tournament in Colombo was organized under the supervision of the International Tennis Federation and the Asian Tennis Federation. A total of 15 national teams participated in the event, with Turkmenistan entering the competition as the sixth-seeded team.

The Turkmen squad includes Suleyman Hudayberdiyev from Specialized Secondary School No. 86 in Ashgabat, Ali Geldiyev from the Young Olympians Training School, and Kerimgeldi Guldurdyyev from the Joint Turkmen-Russian Secondary Comprehensive School named after A.S. Pushkin. The team is led by coach Gurbanberdi Gurbanberdiyev, a bronze medalist at the 2024 Turkmenistan Cup.

During the group stage in Colombo, Turkmenistan finished first in Group B after defeating Oman 3-0 and securing comeback victories against Myanmar and Singapore by identical 2-1 scores. The team later defeated the Philippines 2-0 in the quarterfinals and advanced into the top four of the tournament for the first time in the country’s history.

The final qualification tournament in Shymkent will include strong teams from Australia, Japan, China, India, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Hong Kong. Only four teams will qualify for the final stage of the Junior Davis Cup.

Tournament officials are expected to conduct the official draw shortly before the competition begins. The Turkmen players are now preparing for one of the biggest challenges in their young sporting careers as they compete against some of the strongest junior tennis nations in Asia.

The Junior Davis Cup was introduced by the International Tennis Federation in 1985 as the Junior World Cup for boys under 16 before being renamed in 2002. The competition remains one of the most prestigious junior tennis tournaments in the world and serves as a platform for future professional stars.

#Global News #World Update #Sports