Gaborone — Botswana's on form and rising tennis sensation, Ntungamili Raguin is determined to break barriers and introduce a new name to the world of tennis.
Despite the battle ahead, Raguin is determined to march to the last 16 of the tournament as he faces world no. 22, Gavin Goode of USA at the Australian Junior Open today. Goode is also the tournament seed number 15.
Nonetheless, is betting on his superb performance that saw him win a hard fought match, defeating world no. 25, Dimitar Kisimov of Bulgaria to advance to second round of the tournament.
He won the first set 7-5 and lost second set to Kisimov 1-6. In the third set, Raguin made a strong comeback and defeated Kisimov 6-4. However, today's clash also promises to create fireworks, given that Ntungamili will not want to leave any stone unturned. His performance against Kisimov demonstrated resilience and hard work.
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Last year, Raguin ranked out of the top 250, a position that did not attract any attention, and by that time, no one thought of a Junior Grand Slam.
In December 2025, he was ranked 168 and made it to the qualifying draw for the Australian Open.
He has now made it to the second round in his maiden Grand Slam. Botswana Tennis Association vice president Nonofo Othusitse said given his performances recently, they were confident that anything was possible with Raguin.
"He played and won against players ranked number two, 25 and 29 in the world," he said. Othusitse said their desire was for Raguin to focus and finish the two sets as it would help him to have time to recover.
BOPA
