ITF JUNIOR MASTERS RESULTS: 5 April 2015

Andrey Rublev (RUS) defeated Taylor Fritz (USA) 67(2) 63 64 to be crowned men’s ITF Junior Masters champion and Xu Shilin (CHN) overcame Kristina Schmiedlova (SVK) 64 62 to win the women’s ITF Junior Masters title. Both champions will receive a travel grant of $15,000 and the pick of three wild cards, including the ATP World Tour 500 event in Valencia and the ATP World Tour 250 qualifying event in Gstaad.

The ITF Junior Masters featured 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. Both draws were played on a knock-out basis with positional play-offs, with each player guaranteed three matches to determine their final position between first and eighth. The 16 competitors also competed for a total prize fund of $160,000 in travel grants, and wild cards that have been offered by the ITF’s member nations and professional tournaments.

To review all the coverage of the ITF Junior Masters visit the match centre on the ITF Juniors website: http://www.itftennis.com/juniors/tournaments/itf-junior-masters.aspx.

Results

Men’s Singles final

No. 1 Andrey Rublev (RUS) d. Taylor Fritz (USA) 67(2) 63 64

Women’s Singles final

No. 1 Xu Shilin (CHN) d. Kristina Schmiedlova (SVK) 64 62

Men’s Singles 3rd-4th play-off

Duck Hee Lee (KOR) d. No. 2 Orlando Luz (BRA) 63 75

Women’s Singles 3rd-4th play-off

No. 2 Iryna Shymanovich (BLR) d. Jil Teichmann (SUI) 62 62

Men’s Singles 5th-6th play-off

Chung Yunseong (KOR) d. Michael Mmoh (USA) 57 75 75

Women’s Singles 5th-6th play-off

Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov (ESP) d. Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) 61 76(1)

Men’s Singles 7th-8th play-off

Marcelo Zormann (BRA) d. Jaume Munar (ESP) 64 63

Women’s Singles 7th-8th play-off

Elena Gabriela Ruse (ROU) d. Marketa Vondrousova (CZE) 75 ret.

Matches carried over from Saturday 4 April:

Women’s Singles semifinal

No. 1 Xu Shilin (CHN) d. Jil Teichmann (SUI) 76(4) 46 63

Women’s Singles 5th-8th place play-off

Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) d. Elena Gabriela Ruse (ROU) 62 36 62

ITF JUNIOR MASTERS RESULTS: 4 April 2015

Rain stopped play with two women’s singles matches still to finish. Play will resume at 10am (2am GMT) on Sunday.

The ITF Junior Masters features 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. Both draws are being played on a knock-out basis with positional play-offs, with each player guaranteed three matches to determine their final position between first and eighth. The 16 competitors are also competing for a total prize fund of $160,000 in travel grants, and wild cards that have been offered by the ITF’s member nations and professional tournaments.

Live coverage of the ITF Junior Masters is available on the ITF Juniors website match centre: http://www.itftennis.com/juniors/tournaments/itf-junior-masters.aspx. The match centre features an interactive live blog, live scores, news articles, photographs and the latest results. Matches are also being streamed live on http://www.tennisjuniortv.com

Results

Men’s Singles semifinals

No. 1 Andrey Rublev (RUS) d. Duck Hee Lee (KOR) 63 46 64
Taylor Fritz (USA) d. No. 2 Orlando Luz (BRA) 62 36 61

Women’s Singles semifinals

No. 1 Xu Shilin (CHN) v Jil Teichmann (SUI) not played due to rain
Kristina Schmiedlova (SVK) d. No. 2 Iryna Shymanovich (BLR) 63 36 64

Men’s Singles 5th-8th play-offs

Michael Mmoh (USA) d. Marcelo Zormann (BRA) 61 64
Chung Yunseong (KOR) d. Jaume Munar (ESP) 46 76(2) 64

Women’s Singles 5th-8th play-offs

Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov (ESP) d. Marketa Vondrousova (CZE) 46 76(2) 61
Elena Gabriela Ruse (ROU) v Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) 26 1-2 play halted due to rain

ITF JUNIOR MASTERS RESULTS:3 April 2015

The ITF Junior Masters features 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. Both draws are being played on a knock-out basis with positional play-offs, with each player guaranteed three matches to determine their final position between first and eighth. The 16 competitors are also competing for a total prize fund of $160,000 in travel grants, and wild cards that have been offered by the ITF’s member nations and professional tournaments.

Live coverage of the ITF Junior Masters is available on the ITF Juniors website match centre: http://www.itftennis.com/juniors/tournaments/itf-junior-masters.aspx. The match centre features an interactive live blog, live scores, news articles, photographs and the latest results. Matches are also being streamed live on http://www.tennisjuniortv.com

Results

Men’s Singles first round

No. 1 Andrey Rublev (RUS) d. Michael Mmoh (USA) 64 75
Duck Hee Lee (KOR) d. Marcelo Zormann (BRA) 63 60
Taylor Fritz (USA) d. Jaume Munar (ESP) 60 63
No. 2 Orlando Luz (BRA) d. Chung Yunseong (KOR) 62 67(6) 75

Women’s Singles first round

No. 1 Xu Shilin (CHN) d. Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov (ESP) 63 63
Jil Teichmann (SUI) d. Marketa Vondrousova (CZE) 63 62
Kristina Schmiedlova (SVK) d. Elena Gabriela Ruse (ROU) 61 62
No. 2 Iryna Shymanovich (BLR) d. Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) 61 1-0 ret.

Jiri Novak Named Event Ambassador For ITF Junior Masters

Jiri Novak, of the Czech Republic, who won seven singles and 17 doubles titles in an outstanding career, has been named event ambassador for the inaugural ITF Junior Masters in Chengdu, China on 3-5 April 2015.

The ITF Junior Masters will showcase 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 event will take place at the Sichuan International Tennis Centre in Chengdu.

In his role as event ambassador, Novak will take part in a mentoring programme that the ITF is providing for players during the competition week. Headed by sports sciences expert and peak performance coach Dr Ann Quinn, the programme will look at the transition to professional tennis and focus on training, competition and developing mental toughness.

Novak, who retired in 2007, was renowned for his strong work ethic and consistent results, and took great pride in representing his country. During a 15-year professional career, he reached a career-high ranking of No. 5 in singles and No. 6 in doubles, and represented Czech Republic in Davis Cup for 11 years and at three Olympic Games. Quinn has a long record as a performance coach, having worked with Pat Cash, Pat Rafter and Shingo Kunieda in tennis and wheelchair tennis, but has also coached Australian cricket team members, boxing and kickboxing world champions and multiple Paralympic gold medallists.

“Jiri Novak is an excellent choice to serve as event ambassador,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti. “He always showed great professionalism and sportsmanship, and took great pride in playing for Czech Republic. I am all sure the players at the ITF Junior Masters will benefit from his insight.”

Novak said: “I am delighted to have been asked to take part in this inaugural event, and look forward to sharing some of my knowledge and experience with these talented young players. This is an important stage of their careers and I hope they find the week a rewarding experience.”

The mentoring programme is among a number of ways in which the ITF Junior Masters will assist these top juniors in making a transition from junior tennis to the professional game. The 16 competitors will also be competing for a total prize fund of $160,000 in travel grants, alongside wild cards that have been offered by the ITF’s member nations and professional tournaments.

Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash of Australia also believes that the ITF Junior Masters will benefit some of the game’s most promising young players. He said: “This is a great initiative for young players of many nations to get together to learn in a competitive situation and at the same time advance their knowledge by interacting with world experts in the many different fields of tennis. This really is an amazing opportunity.”

Twelve countries will be represented in Chengdu. 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.

Players Compete For Wild Cards At ITF Junior Masters

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.

Francesco Ricci Bitti, photo credit ITF.com

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.

ITF launches Junior Masters in Chengdu

The ITF today announced the launch of the ITF Junior Masters, a new international event featuring the top eight ranked boys and girls on the 18-and-under ITF Junior World Ranking at the end of the year. The inaugural event will take place on 3-5 April 2015 at the Sichuan International Tennis Centre in Chengdu, China following a three-year agreement with the Chinese Tennis Association and the Chengdu Sport Bureau.

The ITF Junior Masters will showcase the next generation of players and also assist them in making a transition from junior tennis to the professional game through various opportunities including travel grants. Further information will be released in due course.

The top eight boys and girls on the ITF Junior World Ranking at the end of 2014 will be invited to participate in the ITF Junior Masters, which will consist of two knock-out singles events, with each player guaranteed three matches to determine their final finishing position.

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 three match courts, including a 6000-capacity stadium court, with matches broadcast and streamed live over the three days.

The ITF Junior Masters joins the ITF junior team competitions, the 14-and-under World Junior Tennis competition, and 16-and-under Junior Davis Cup and Junior Fed Cup by BNP Paribas, as the premier junior events on the 2015 ITF calendar.

ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said: “We are delighted that some of the world’s most talented young players will have the opportunity to compete in this new, exciting event while, at the same time, further assisting them in their transition to the senior game. The ITF Junior Circuit has long been the main pathway to professional tennis for young players, but this event will provide an added incentive for players to secure a high year-end ranking. We are grateful for the support and the vision of the Chinese Tennis Association and Chengdu Sports Bureau to be able to launch this event in such an impressive setting.”

Madam Sun Jinfang, Vice President of the Chinese Tennis Association, said “I would like to express our thanks to the ITF for their confidence in the CTA and Chengdu as host city in staging the event. Chengdu has a long tennis tradition, with a large tennis population and many activities in schools and universities, so it is an appropriate venue for this new event. We look forward to seeing some of the future stars of the game in action, and will work hard with our partners to ensure a first-class event.”

Ms Tan Xuejun, Director of Chengdu Sport Bureau, said: “We are proud to be staging the first-ever ITF Junior Masters. Chengdu is one of the Chinese cities with the best tennis development and popularity, and the staging of major events is an important part of this development. The city has already held a number of international tennis events that will act as a good foundation for the ITF Junior Masters. We are confident that the players will put on a great performance for the fans both on site and watching on television around the world.”