Brandon Moyo, Sports Reporter

ZIMBABWE’S tennis siblings, Benjamin and Courtney Lock lost their final match 2-0 in the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Ambato Challenger Doubles to win the silver medal in Ambato, Ecuador on Sunday.

The siblings lost 7-6 and 6-3 against the Argentine pair of Santiago Rodriguez Taverna and Thiago Agustin Tirante to bring home the silver medal after an impressive tournament.

Benjamin and Courtney ended the tour as the second best pair in the tournament which ran from October 17-23.
The brothers began their journey with a win in the first round against Gonzalo Bueno and Alvaro Guillen Meza from Peru and Ecuador, respectively.

The Zimbabweans came from behind to win the match after losing the first set, 6-2. They then went on to win the two final sets to book their place in the quarter finals of the prestigious event.

In the quarter finals, the Zimbabwean pair went on to face Nicolas Alvarez and Jorge Brian Panta, both from Peru. The match was a walkover in favour of the Zimbabweans thus progressing to the next stage.

Another comeback was on the cards for the Locks as they trailed after the first set which they lost 3-6 in the semi-finals.

The bothers were not deterred as they are no strangers to losing the first set and going on to win the match.

The fighting spirit continued and they emerged victorious in the remaining two sets, winning 6-4 and 10-5 to book their place in the final. The Locks were playing against Boris Arias and Federico Zeballos from Bolivia.

Their opponents in the final, Taverna and Tirante booked their spot in the final after a win in the semi-finals against the

Indian duo of Sriram Balaji and Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan.

In the singles tournament, Benjamin was eliminated in the round of 16 after a 6-3 and 6-4 defeat at the hands of Serbia’s Miljan Zekic. Benjamin had reached the round of 16 after winning his sets, 6-4 and 7-5 against Argentina’s Facundo Juarez in the round of 32.

His brother Courtney was eliminated in the second qualifying round after losing his sets despite winning the first one. Courtney won the first set 6-7 but went on to lose the other two, 6-2 and 7-6 against Conner Huertas del Pino from Peru.

The brothers’ coach Freeman Nyamunokora said he was happy with their performance. —  @brandon_malvin