Kale Dalla Costa was the lone local player to advance to the main draw when the round-robin phase of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tennis Tour Juniors J60 Under-18 Tournament concluded at the National Racquet Centre, Orange Grove Road, Tacarigua, Wednesday.
Facing off with fellow unbeaten player USA’s Levi Sevim in their Group G winner-take-all decider, Dalla Costa recovered from losing the first set, 4-6, to win the next two sets, 6-4 and 10-4, to end with a perfect 3-0 pool record and a spot in the knockout draw.
When the tournament began earlier this week, Dalla Costa defeated Barbadian Tyler Davis 6-1, 6-3 and followed it up by hammering Colombian Juan Sebastian Monroy Rojas 6-0, 6-0 to set up a group decider with USA’s Levi Sevim, who also won for the second time in the group, beating Davis 6-2, 6-2.
T&T’s three other players in contention to advance out of their group failed to do this, despite wins for Josiah Hills and Christopher Khan, while Nirav Dougdeen and Jayden Mitchell were beaten.
Hills steamrolled Barbadian Zach King 6-1, 6-2 in his final match in Group F after beating Brazilian Diego Valpereiro 7-6(7), 3-6, 10-6 on Tuesday, but due to his loss against Canada’s Emryk Crete 6-3, 1-6, 5-10, he ended with a 2-1 record while Valpereiro beat Crete 6-3, 7-6(3), leaving the trio all with the same record.
In the end, Valpereiro managed to secure the top spot based on percentage sets points won ahead of Crete with Hills third.
In Group D, T&T’s Christopher Khan defeated Barbadian Ammon Archer 7-5, 4-6, 10-4 for his first win in three matches, while USA’s David Bvunzawabaya sealed top spot via his win against Switzerland’s Hector De Coulon 7-5, 4-6, 10-4, and in Group E, Dougdeen went under to unbeaten France’s fifth-ranked Paul Croisy 2-6, 0-6 to end with a 1-2 record, with his lone win coming against Norway’s Nicolai Rydholt 6-2, 6-7(5), 10-3.
In Group A, Mitchell, who won his Caribbean clash with Barbadian Travis Licorish on Monday, 6-0, 6-3, was defeated by US Virgin Islands’ Yared Alfred, 0-6, 3-6, and USA’s Nicolas Pedraza, 1-6, 0-0, to end with a 1-2 record as well.
This year’s tournament for the boys is being held using a new format from the ITF for the J30 and J60 levels, whereby the first round is contested via a round-robin comprising four players at the end of which the top player in each group will advance to the main draw quarterfinal knockout stage.
On Tuesday, the T&T quintet of Cyra Ramcharan, Shiloh Walker, Lilly Mohammed, Reena Dougdeen, and Madison Khan were all ousted in their respective girls’ round-of-16 matches.
Ramcharan went under to fifth-ranked USA’s Briana Houlgrave 3-6, 4-6; Walker was no match for fourth-ranked Mildalyn D’Aguilar of the USA and bowed out 0-6, 0-6; Mohammed was ousted by USA’s Grace Dollar, ranked eighth 1-6, 0-6; Dougdeen was trounced by second-ranked Daphne Lovdahl of Great Britain 0-6, 0-6; and Khan suffered a 1-6, 0-6 loss to Australian third-ranked player Taylor Burke.
In the other matches, top-ranked Mexican Romina Garcia blanked Ecuador’s Mia Leo Rivera 6-0, 6-0; Canada’s sixth-ranked Ava Sanicharan dumped Ecuador’s Luciana Serrano 6-0, 6-1; and Canada’s Anvika Saraswathi edged past Turkey’s Ipek Oncu 6-4, 6-4. The tournament resumes from 9 am Thursday.
Other results
Boys Round-Robin Group Stage
Tuesday
Group B: Mateo Guitterez (El Sal) bt Michael Berger (USA) 6-1, 7-6(9); Nicolas Moravec (Czech Republic) bt Jaiden Gormandy (T&T) 6-2, 6-0.
Group C: Geronimo Montoya Perez (Col) bt Jack Brown (T&T) 6-1, 6-0; David Beckles (USA) bt William Jesus Hernandez Ramirez (ECu) 6-2, 6-3.
Group H: Xavier Hastick (Can) bt Novak Malcolm (T&T) 6-0, 6-0; Zach Jenoudet (Fra) bt Nirbhay Agarwal (USA) 4-6, 6-2, 12-10.
Wednesday
Group B: Michael Berger (USA) bt Jaiden Gormandy (T&T) 6-0, 6-0; Nicolas Moravec (Czech Republic) bt Mateo Gutierrez (El Sal) 6-2, 6-2.
Group C: Ecuadorean William Jesus Ramirez bt Jack Brown (T&T) 7-5, 6-1; David Beckles (USA) bt Geronimo Montoya Perez (Col) 6-0, 6-3.
Group G: Tyler David (B’dos) bt Juan Sebastian Monroy Rojas (Col.) 6-4, 6-2.
Group H: Nirbhay Agarwal (USA) bt Novak Malcolm (T&T) 6-0, 6-2; Xavier Hastick (Can) bt Zach Jenoudet (Fra) 7-6(3), 7-5.
Girls’ quarterfinals
Romina Dominguez Garcia (Mex) bt Briana Houlgrave (Bah) 6-2, 6-1; Ava Sanicharan (Can) bt Daphne Lovdahl (GBR) 6-2, 6-2; Midalyn D’Aguillar (USA) bt Anvika Saraswathi (Can) 6-0, 6-3; and eighth-ranked Grace Dollar outlasted Taylor Burke of Australia 6-2, 1-6, 6-3.
