The ITF Yesterday announced that 25 member nations and their professional tournaments have offered to donate wild cards to participants in the inaugural ITF Junior Masters in Chengdu, China on 3-5 April 2015.
The ITF Junior Masters is a new international event showcasing eight male and eight female players who qualified on the basis of their 18-and-under ITF Junior World Ranking at the end of 2014. The inaugural event will take place at the Sichuan International Tennis Centre in Chengdu following a three-year agreement with the Chinese Tennis Association and the Chengdu Sport Bureau.
The men’s singles sees ITF world junior champion Andrey Rublev of Russia joined by US duo Taylor Fritz and Michael Mmoh, Orlando Luz and Marcelo Zormann of Brazil, Korea’s Chung Yunseong and Duck Hee Lee, and Spain’s Jaume Munar.
Youth Olympic champion Xu Shilin of China heads the women’s entries, alongside Iryna Shymanovich of Belarus, Jil Teichmann of Switzerland, Kristina Schmiedlova of Slovakia, Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov of Spain, Marketa Vondrousova of Czech Republic, and Elena Gabriela Ruse of Romania.
The ITF Junior Masters will consist of two knock-out singles events, with each player guaranteed three matches to determine their final finishing position.
The provision of wild cards is one of the ways in which the ITF Junior Masters will assist these top juniors in making a transition from junior tennis to the professional game. Member nations and their professional tournaments have already donated 2 ATP World Tour wild cards, 20 ATP Challenger wild cards, 25 ITF Women’s Circuit tournament wild cards at $25,000 level or above, and over 40 wild cards for ITF Men’s and Women’s Circuit events at $10,000 or $15,000 level. Players will have the opportunity to select wild cards for use in 2015 and 2016 in the order of their final finishing positions.
ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said: “We are grateful to all the National Associations and tournaments who have offered to donate wild cards for participants in the ITF Junior Masters. This new event will not only showcase some of the world’s most talented young players, but further assist them in their transition to the senior game.”
The 16 competitors will also be competing for a total prize fund of $160,000 in travel grants. Each player to qualify for the Masters will earn a minimum travel grant of $7,000, while the boys’ and girls’ champions will both be awarded $15,000 travel grants.
ITF Juniors Committee Chairman, Jon Vegosen, said: “The ITF Junior Masters has made a strong financial commitment to help these promising young athletes at the start of their professional tennis careers. In addition to the support offered by the travel grant fund of $160,000, all participants and their coaches will receive free international travel to the event and a high level of hospitality during their week in Chengdu.”
The Sichuan International Tennis Centre, which was built in 2008 and consists of 12 match courts and 20 practice courts, has already hosted a number of international events. The ITF Junior Masters will be staged on two match courts, including a 6000-capacity stadium court, with matches broadcast by Sichuan TV and streamed live over the three days.
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