Nigeria moved within touching distance of promotion at the 2026 Billie Jean King Cup Africa Group III Qualifier after rising tennis star Success Ogunjobi delivered a composed and clinical performance to defeat Botswana’s Chelsea Chakanyuka in the opening singles rubber of the decisive promotional playoff in Gaborone.
Sports247 reports that Ogunjobi overcame the host nation’s representative 6-2, 6-4, handing Team Nigeria a priceless 1-0 advantage in one of the most important ties of the tournament.
Facing a partisan home crowd and the pressure of a high-stakes encounter, the Aurum Tennis Academy standout displayed remarkable maturity beyond her years. Ogunjobi dominated the opening set with aggressive baseline play, powerful groundstrokes, and consistent serving before maintaining her composure in a more competitive second set to close out the match in straight sets.
Her victory has placed Nigeria firmly in control of the promotion showdown, leaving the team just one win away from securing a place in Africa Group II.
The result also reinforces Ogunjobi’s growing reputation as one of Nigeria’s brightest tennis prospects. Throughout the competition, the youngster has repeatedly risen to the occasion, producing match-winning performances when the pressure has been at its highest.
The Billie Jean King Cup, regarded as the women’s equivalent of the Davis Cup, remains the world’s largest annual international women’s team tennis competition, making promotion a significant milestone for any participating nation.
With Ogunjobi setting the tone, attention now turns to Nigeria’s top-ranked player, Oyinlomo Quadre, who is tasked with sealing victory in the second singles rubber against Botswana. Quadre, one of the country’s most experienced players, will be expected to build on her teammate’s success and complete Nigeria’s promotion mission.
Victory in the tie would mark another important achievement for Nigerian tennis, reflecting the progress being made by the country’s emerging generation of female players. It would also serve as a reward for the weeks of intensive preparation undertaken by the team ahead of the championship.
As the decisive rubber approaches, hopes are high that Team Nigeria can finish the job and return to Africa Group II, further strengthening the nation’s growing profile in African tennis.
Political analyst Abubakar Turaki has argued that the All Progressives Congress, APC’s control of 31 state governors and millions of members does not automatically guarantee victory in the 2027 general election.
Turaki made the remarks during an appearance on S24 TV on Monday, while analysing the political atmosphere ahead of the 2027 elections and the controversy surrounding the chanting of "On Your Mandate We Shall Stand" during President Bola Tinubu’s presentation of the budget at the National Assembly.
He argued that the President could have simply asked those involved to stop if he was uncomfortable with it.
“If the President does not want this kind of chanting, he could have simply asked them to keep quiet,” Turaki said.
The analyst also recalled the circumstances surrounding former President Goodluck Jonathan’s defeat in the 2015 presidential election, as documented in Jonathan’s book, My Transition Hours, and Against the Run of Play.
He recalled that Jonathan enjoyed the support of between 20 and 24 state governors during his re-election campaign but still lost the presidential election, arguing that political control and numerical strength do not necessarily translate into electoral victory.
“Having 31 state governors and almost 13 million APC members does not automatically translate into winning the 2027 election,” he added.
Turaki further alleged that some individuals within the ruling party were working against its interests despite publicly identifying with the APC.
He cited comments attributed to Senator Ali Ndume, who reportedly warned that some politicians wear the APC cap in the morning but work against the party in the evening.
“Senator Ndume made it clear that there are people wearing the APC cap in the morning, but in the evening they are working against the party,” Turaki said.
The political analyst also questioned the internal democratic processes of political parties, recalling controversies surrounding vote counting during party activities.
He said videos showing difficulties with vote counting had raised questions about the conduct of internal party processes.
“I wonder if a full-grown adult cannot count. It is simply arithmetic. We all saw the videos. It cut across all the political parties that conducted their activities,” he said.
Turaki maintained that Nigerians should not assume that the numerical strength of any political party would determine the outcome of the 2027 general election.
He concluded that the forthcoming election would be a significant political contest, urging Nigerians to expect an interesting electoral process.
An Ikeja S£xual Offences and Domestic Violence Court in Lagos State has sentenced a man, identified as Idris Ashimiyu, to life imprisonment for defiling an 11-year-old girl.
Justice Abiola Soladoye delivered the judgment on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, after finding Ashimiyu guilty of a one-count charge of defilement brought against him by the Lagos State Government.
During the trial, the survivor, who was 13 years old when she testified, told the court that she knew the convict because he ran errands and washed cars within their compound.
She narrated how the incident happened and told the court that her grandmother later discovered what had happened after going to look for her.
Ashimiyu had pleaded not guilty to the charge. However, after reviewing the evidence presented by both the prosecution and defence, Justice Soladoye found the survivor’s testimony credible and held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
The court consequently sentenced him to life imprisonment and ordered that his name be entered into the Lagos State Sexual Offenders Register.