ISLAMABAD, Aug 26: The girls under-17 final of the Freedom Cup tennis tournament between Natasha Afridi and Sarah Mahboob to be played on Saturday promises to be a hotly-contested match.

Both Natasha, 11 and Sarah who is 13, qualified for the final by beating their opponents who were more experienced and senior to them. Sarah knocked out Sara Mansoor in three sets while Natasha beat top seed Anoosha Aslam in two.

It is therefore a rare distinction for the two girls who played each other in the Islamabad Tennis Academy junior tournament last month, to have made it to the final here. In that competition, Sarah had beaten Natasha twice.

Their coach Mahboob Khan says that Sarah has the power behind her shots while Natasha is able to vary her strokes. "Judging them on their current technique and knack for competition, both players have the potential to develop into world class juniors," he told Dawn.

Meanwhile little Sarah has appealed to the Islamabad Tennis Association (ITA) and the Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) to sponsor her travel including boarding and lodging for two ITF international junior tournaments being held in Karachi next month.