DESPITE the age-old rivalry between fierce foes Young Africans and Simba on the local football landscape, few would dispute the fact that the Jangwani Street-based boys have held sway over local football in the past few seasons.

Understandably, it is highly likely that Simba started the current 2024/25 season with every intention of loosening defending league champions Young Africans’ iron-like grip on the league trophy.

Worryingly, Young Africans have suffered uncharacteristic slip-ups in recent league games, which must have provided boundless glee to the vast assemblage of Simba supporters.

As for Simba, they are presently sitting prettily at the summit of the standings with 25 points.

However, in spite of their recent unforeseen setbacks, Young Africans are still very much in the tight race for the title as the Jangwani Street-based side are in second position with 24 points.

Unquestionably, one does not need to be a neurosurgeon to see that Simba are merely one point clear of Young Africans, which of course means that both teams are presently neck and neck in the enormous battle for the NBC Premier League trophy.

Indeed, at this stage in the season, it is still difficult to tell whether the race for the title, which is presently on a knife- edge, will go right down to the wire.

Whichever way the chips may fall, though, one hopes that the great battle for the title will continue to be absolutely gripping viewing for all keen football enthusiasts.

Let us now switch our focus to the incredibly competitive arena of global women’s tennis.

For the entire period of last week, the season-ending Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) championship was being held in Saudi Arabia and it was doubtlessly a bona fide cracking competition.

Indeed, with smashing tennis players like Iga Swiatek, the teenage sensation Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka, the season-ending WTA championship was always going to serve-up some memorably tough tussles between women’s tennis’ top-notch greats.

After disappointingly failing to secure a grand slam trophy this year, the African-American tennis prodigy Gauff came into the competition with a strong desire to end the season on a high.

This hunger for success was on full display during the group stage when Gauff sank Swiatek in an absorbing encounter to set up a semi-final showdown against the formidable Belarussian Sabalenka.

And, in that captivating semi-final, Gauff convincingly overcame Sabalenka in straight sets to progress to the finale of the whole competition.

In the final, the African-American tennis player extraordinaire Gauff came up against the season’s surprise package, the Chinese star Qinwen Zheng, in what proved to be an extremely fascinating tennis contest.

Astonishingly, the unheralded Chinese star claimed the opening set 6-3 in what was an impressive display.

Nevertheless, Gauff bounced back strongly in the second set to triumph 6-4 and in a nail-biting third set tie-breaker, the American emerged victorious 7-6 to superbly claim the trophy.

Indisputably, Gauff’s magnificent triumph will be felt far and wide across the globe especially here in Africa where countless young women look up to her.

Hats off then to Gauff, who is now soaring to greater heights in the tremendously competitive realm of global women’s tennis.