Tennis Europe News - Issue138 by Tennis Europe

News 138 Fe bruary

I 2018

Tennis Europe appoints new Chief Executive Officer Tennis Europe has announced the appointment of Thomas Hammerl as Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect. Hammerl, 45, is a former CEO of the Austrian Tennis Federation, where he was responsible for overseeing the organisation’s sponsoring, commercial operations and communications and served as Davis & Fed Cup Team Manager. He has also served on the Junior Tennis Committees of both Tennis Europe and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) in recent years. Tennis Europe President Vladimir Dmitriev commented, “Tennis Europe is excited to begin a fresh chapter with the new CEO. Thomas’ extensive experience with national federations, his strong marketing background and profound understanding of the tennis ecosystem made him stand out as the ideal candidate to ensure Tennis Europe’s continued growth, to oversee the implementation of a new business strategy and to continue the excellent work of our dedicated staff.”

The appointment followed a 10-week recruitment process that attracted almost 200 applications. An Assessment Committee carried out interviews with an initial shortlist before meeting the final four candidates for face-toface interviews in Zürich, after which the final decision was taken by the Board of Management. The Board also announced that Magnus Grönvold would be promoted to the new role of Chief Operating Officer, working closely with the new CEO at the regional association’s headquarters in Basel, Switzerland.

Inside this issue France retains European Tennis Trophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

“I am delighted and extremely motivated to join Tennis Europe,” said Hammerl. “I am pleased that the Board was convinced by my pledge to focus on leadership, communication, sponsorship, development and integrity. Together with the President, Board and staff, I look forward to executing an ambitious new strategy for the prosperity and growth of Tennis Europe and its member nations.”

Our Partners 02

Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 05 HEAD and Tennis Europe renew partnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 09 European Senior & Senior Club Championships . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Latvia to host European Beach Tennis Championships . . . . . 11 New champions crowned at Les Petits As . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Introducing… Diana Shnaider & Victor Lillov . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Tennis Europe Junior Tour Rankings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Tennis Europe Junior Tour Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

European ITF Pro Circuit Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

France retains European Tennis Trophy by David Lloyd Leisure France has captured the European Tennis Trophy for Overall Performance for a sixth time, retaining the title to spend a second successive year atop the league table of Tennis Europe’s 50 member nations. Established to recognise and reward the annual achievements of Tennis Europe’s member nations, the European Tennis Trophy considers the performances of players and teams representing national tennis federations across four disciplines of the sport throughout the season. The key to France’s overall victory was once again down to strong performances in all the contributing categories in 2017, with the nation retaining the Professional Tennis Trophy and appearing in the Top 5 of all other contributing categories - Junior, Senior and Wheelchair Tennis. Victory over Belgium in the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas final at the end of the season ensured that France would pip Russia to pole position in overall performance for the second year running. The win also ensured a decisive victory in terms of Professional Tennis, which saw France earn over 1,000 more points than second-placed Germany. Much of the Overall Top 10 remains unchanged, with Germany swapping places with Czech Republic in third and fourth, followed by Spain, Great Britain and Italy. Ukraine makes waves, rising five spots to eighth – its best ever finish, thanks largely to a stellar year in Junior Tennis, while Belgium’s strong performances in international team events helps the nation rise from 16th to 9th. The biggest surprise of the 2017 awards sees Great Britain end the Netherlands’ 16-year dominance of the Wheelchair Tennis Trophy, which it had won every year since the discipline was first included in 2001. Britain has been steadily challenging for the top spot in recent years – even finishing joint first in 2015 – but strode ahead in 2017 thanks to strong performances at the World Team Cup and notable

Davis Cup victory helped secure a repeat European Tennis Trophy win for France.

advances in the world rankings. In the end, Britain’s major rival for the title turned out to be France, with the two nations finishing over 100 points clear of 3rd-placed Netherlands. There were no such surprises in the other two contributing categories, as Germany sailed to the Senior Tennis Trophy for a 27th time, scoring three times as many points as perennial runner-up Austria. The Junior Tennis Trophy went to Russia for a record seventh consecutive year. As has become the norm, strong performances across Tennis Europe’s flagship junior team events saw Russia dominate the junior category, earning almost double the points of second placed Czech Republic. Other notable performances came from Ukraine (up to third, scoring a record 1,221 points), Belarus (climbing 11 spots to 11th) and Sweden (up 14 to 14th). Returning to overall performance, and several nations have reason to celebrate, with notable improvements on their 2016 standings. Belarus leads the way, climbing seven spots to finish the year just outside of the Top 10. Sweden (#19), Bulgaria (#21), Israel (#25), Portugal (#26) and Bosnia & Herzegovina (#30) also all climbed four or more sports. Apart from Overall winners France, Spain was the only nation to appear in the Top 10 of all four contributing categories. Announcing the results, Tennis Europe President Vladimir Dmitriev said, “I would like to congratulate all of our member nations on another very successful year for European tennis. Every point earned in the European Tennis Trophy represents not just the achievements of players and teams, but also the performances of coaches, administrators and federation staff across the continent. Our winners can point to their victories as evidence that the policies and programs carried out by each hardworking federation are paying dividends, and we look forward to another year of competition, cooperation and camaraderie in European tennis in 2018.” French Tennis Federation President Bernard Giudicelli commented, “I am of course delighted to receive this award from Tennis Europe. It rewards and highlights all day-to-day work of our federation from each club to the national Technical Department, without forgetting the regions that are very involved in the training of our players. It is a source of pride that this title is obtained in the region in which more than two-thirds of world tennis is concentrated, and whose constituent countries engage in remarkable work. More than ever we must defend and promote the work of the federations and the volunteers who run them. It is to them that I dedicate and share this award.”

France retains European Tennis Trophy by David Lloyd Leisure Glenn Earlam, CEO David Lloyd Leisure remarked; “Many congratulations to France for once again scooping Tennis Europe’s much coveted trophy for Overall Performance. 2017 has been yet another fantastic year for European tennis and standards have been high. We are delighted to be associated with such a prestigious award.”

The awards will be presented at a special ceremony during the Annual General Meeting of Tennis Europe in Budapest in March. See below for the full results table. For a detailed explanation of how the points are calculated, please click here

European Tennis Trophy Ranking Nation

Professional Tennis

Junior Tennis

Seniors Tennis

Wheelchair Tennis

TOTAL

3034 1891 2017 1946 1933 903 882 667 1295 1237 1074 642 1150 743 1018 241 310 205 101 536 159 150 148 290 84 155 160 169 132 134 48 0 92 15 49 12 64 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

1214 2634 313 1416 719 801 1129 1221 310.5 463.5 522 104 364.5 543 274.5 208 563.5 528 360 95.5 317.5 321 265 38 71 91 40 37.5 10 37 71 120 31 100 54 25 0 33 23 15 15 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

305.5 52 1633 156 282 200 220.5 0 98 79.5 0 270.5 0 10 0 562.5 33 45 158.5 0 0 0 10 35 0 0 6 8 60 0 10 5 0 0 0 32.5 0 0 0 2.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

657 131 119 10 84 674 40 9 176 98 0 553 0 0 0 76 113 0 62 0 0 0 23 0 135 0 23 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

5210.5 4708 4082 3528 3018 2578 2271.5 1897 1879.5 1878 1596 1569.5 1514.5 1296 1292.5 1087.5 1019.5 778 681.5 631.5 476.5 471 446 363 290 246 229 214.5 202 171 129 125 123 115 103 69.5 64 33 23 17.5 15 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

23686

15509

4275

2983

46453

2017 (2016) 1 (1) 2 (2) 3 (4) 4 (3) 5 (5) 6 (6) 7 (7) 8 (13) 9 (16) 10 (9) 11 (18) 12 (8) 13 (10) 14 (12) 15 (11) 16 (15) 17 (14) 18 (19) 19 (23) 20 (17) 21 (25) 22 (22) 23 (20) 24 (24) 25 (30) 26 (32) 27 (21) 28 (28) 29 (27) 30 (38) 31 (33) 32 (31) 33 (26) 34 (36) 35 (35) 36 (34) 37 (37) 38 (40) 39 (38) 40 (29) 41 (41) 42 (41) 43 (41) “ (41) “ (41) “ (41) “ (41) “ (41) “ (41) “ (41)

France Russia Germany Czech Republic Spain Great Britain Italy Ukraine Belgium Switzerland Belarus Netherlands Serbia Romania Croatia Austria Poland Hungary Sweden Slovak Republic Bulgaria Slovenia Denmark Latvia Israel Portugal Greece Estonia Luxembourg Bosnia & Herzegovina Finland Turkey Georgia Lithuania Cyprus Norway Moldova FYR of Macedonia Montenegro Malta Armenia Ireland Albania Andorra Azerbaijan Iceland Kosovo Liechtenstein Monaco San Marino

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Czech Republic repeats 12&U Winter Cups by HEAD title sweep The 12 & Under Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD finals were won by the Czech Republic in both the boys’ and girls’ events for a second consecutive year, marking a second win for the boys’ team overall and a third for the girls since 2012, when this age category of tennis’ biggest international indoor team event was first launched. With almost 60 national teams competing in the qualifying rounds, the final eight were decided after play took place at six venues across the continent at the end of January. The boys’ final rounds took place in Veska in the Czech Republic. The home team were the favourites going into their first match against Portugal. They did not disappoint as they whitewashed the away team 3-0. They backed this up with a 2-1 win over the Brits in the semis. Petr Brunclik was undefeated in the singles, but Vojtech Vales went down to Jamie Diack. Brunlick and Maxim Mrva clinched a tense win in a 10-6 championship tiebreaker victory in the doubles over Diack and Henry Trump. Italy had come through their first encounter the same way, with the same score line in a championship tiebreaker over France in the deciding doubles rubber. In the semi-finals, Giorgio Gatto won his singles, while Daniele Rapagnetta lost his, thus reversing their fortunes from their quarterfinals. In the doubles, the pair again won by the same score in the championship tiebreaker, sending

The Czech champions show off their trophy.

Girls’ champions Czech Republic.

the pair through to Italy’s first final in this age category of the Winter Cups. The final was, for all intents and purposes, an easy win for the hosts. Vales defeated Rapagnetta 6-1 6-3 and Brunclik overcame Gatto in an even easier 6-2 6-0 win in less than an hour. The Italians were able to salvage some pride by pushing the Czechs to the limit in the doubles, but still could not avoid a whitewash, going down 11-9 in a championship tiebreak. Thus, with a 3-0 win, the Czechs proudly held aloft the winners’ trophy on home soil to successfully defend the title they won last year at the same venue. Teams at the boys’ final rounds in Veska.

Opening ceremony of the girls’ final rounds in Sunderland.

The girls played out their final rounds in Sunderland in northern England. The Czech team got off the mark strongly, routing Austria 3-0 in their opener. They followed that up with another unbeaten encounter against Poland. Nikola Bartunkova and Brenda Fruhvirtova were both unbeaten in singles coming in to the final. Bartunkova was also unbeaten in the doubles in the first two rounds with her partner Sara Bejlek. Great Britain came through their first match 2-1 with Sophya Devas and Vlada Kozak claiming victory in the doubles after Kozak had lost her singles in a tough twohour match. In the semis, the Brits were more con-

Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD

12&U Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD Rank

12 & Under Boys

12 & Under Girls

Czech Republic

Italy

Great Britain

Poland

Ukraine 04

Hungary

France 05

Russia

Portugal 06

Bulgaria

Russia 07

Romania

Turkey 08

Austria

vincing, not dropping a rubber, although they had switched Devas for Hannah Read in the doubles, allowing her to rest for the final. That move was ultimately inconsequential, as Bartunkova proved to be the stronger player on finals day, securing a 6-4 6-2 win to give the Czechs the upper hand. Next up, Fruhvirtova emulated Brunclik’s second-rubber rout, allowing Kozak just two games in the first set. Bartunkov and Bejlek then combined again to remain unbeaten in the finals weekend in Sunderland. They swept away Devas and Kozak in less than hour to give the Czech Republic a 3-0 win over the host nation and wrap up a historic ‘double-double’, becoming the first nation ever to win both boys’ and girls’ Winter Cups by HEAD titles in the same age category in two successive years.

Croatia and Czech Republic win 14&U Winter Cups by HEAD crowns The Croatia boys’ team scored a comeback win in the final to claim their first ever Tennis Europe Winter cups by HEAD 14 & under title, while the girls from the Czech Republic took advantage of playing on home soil to clinch a first win since 2013. It is their eighth win overall (ninth if a win as part of Czechoslovakia in 1993 is included). In the boys’ event, there was no luck for the hosts, the Czech Republic, who were knocked out 3-0 by Italy in the first round in Veska. They were joined in their semi-final by Poland, who had earlier beaten Great Britain. The other semi-final was between Croatia – first round winners over the top seeded French team - and Switzerland. The match went to the wire and was eventually won by

Teams celebrate the opening ceremony of the boys’ final rounds in Veska.

Croatia by two rubbers to in a champions’ tie-break in the deciding doubles. Italy was making its second appearance in the final in three years, having defeated the Czech Republic in the 2016 final. However, it was Croatia’s first ever appearance in a final in this category and they got off to a shaky start as Dino Prizmic went down in straight sets to Peter Buldorini 6-2 6-4. Mili Poljicak then pulled things even with his own easy win over Niccolo Ciavarella in 76 minutes. The Croats teamed up against Ciavarella and Daniele Minighini for a tight come-from-behind win to seal the victory 7-5 7-6(3) to claim their first ever title in this category of the sport’s biggest indoor junior team event.

Photos, left to right: The Czech team celebrates winning the Girls 14 & under title. Team Croatia ahead of its maiden 14&U Winter Cups title.

The girls’ final in Rakovnik was a highly-anticipated match between the top seeds, Russia, and the host nation, second seeded Czech Republic. The last time the teams met in the final was in 2013 when the Czechs emerged

Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD victorious. Since then, Russia has featured in the final three out of the past four years, last winning in 2014.

14&U Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD Rank

14 & Under Boys

Croatia

14 & Under Girls

Czech Republic

Italy 02

Russia

Great Britain

Switzerland

Poland 04

Poland

France 05

Belarus

Sweden

Czech Republic

Belgium 07

Switzerland

Serbia

Great Britain

The teams progressed to the semi-finals after posting 3-0 first-round wins over Sweden and Belarus respectively. The semi-final ties proved to be more challenging, with both teams being forced to win deciding doubles rubbers as Russia came from behind to beat Poland and the Czechs edged past Great Britain. To the delight of the home crowd in Rakovnik, after almost six hours of play the final went the way of the Czechs. Linda Fruhvirtova fought back from the loss of the first set to give the hosts the lead with a 3-6 6-3 6-3 win over Erika Andreeva, maintaining her unbeaten record at this year’s Winter Cup finals in the process. Current Tennis Europe Junior Tour #1 Diana Schnaider kept Russian hopes alive with a battling 4-6 6-4 6-3 win over Linda Noskova to level the tie. After a short break, the four players returned to the court with the Czech pair claiming a 7-5 6-3 win in the decisive doubles match to secure the trophy.

Hosts France & Russia claim 16&U Winter Cups by HEAD titles Both the French boys’ and the Russian girls’ teams each scored emphatic wins on home soil in the 16 & Under Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD finals. For the French, it was a record-extending fifteenth win, while the Russians scored their third win in four years. The boys’ finalists made it through to the final in Ronchin as unseeded entrants. In the first round, the French overcame the more fancied Russians, who were seeded third, 2-1. Meanwhile the Netherlands beat second seeds Hungary 3-0. In the semi-finals France defeated Italy while the Netherlands outdid Spain, 3-0 and 2-1 respectively.

Boys 16 & Under winners France with the Davis Cup trophy.

These are teams with vastly different results over the past few years. Since the dawn of the new century, France has been a far stronger performer, appearing in 10 finals, winning 7, with their most recent victory in 2014. The Netherlands, on the other hand, have only been in one final in the same period, finishing as runners up to Russia in 2016. The final turned out to be a whitewash, with the French team completely asserting their dominance. They brushed the Dutch team aside, shutting them out altogether with a resounding 3-0 win. The Dutch were unable to claim even a set in consolation, such was the quality of play of their opponents. Arthur Cazaux made light work of Fons Van Sambeek 6-1 6-0 in the first match, before Harold Mayot defeated Guy Den Ouden 6-2 6-3. Ca-

Russia celebrates victory in Kazan.

zaux & Terence Atmane then secured a Dutch shut-out with a 7-5 6-3 win over Van Sambeek & Tijmen Loof.

Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD Playing on home soil is usually an advantage, and it turned out to also be the case for the Russians. The girls wasted no time in getting off the mark in Kazan with a decisive 3-0 win over Spain in the first round. Their

neighbours from Ukraine, seeded second, also won their first-round encounter against Austria but were then taken out by Belarus 2-1 in the semi-finals. In the other semi, Russia saw off France by the same scoreline, setting up another match between neighbours for the final.

16&U Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD

At this level the Russians have been the dominant force in recent years, although their last win came two years ago. In the previous 20 events, Russia has been in the final 15 times, lifting the trophy on 9 occasions. In contrast, Belarus has shown only sporadic signs of force. They were runners up twice in the same period - to Russia, no less - and winners way back in 2004, with a team featuring none other than future world #1 Victoria Azarenka.

Rank

16 & Under Boys

France Russia

16 & Under Girls

Netherlands 02

Belarus

Italy 03

France

Spain 04

Ukraine

Czech Republic

Russia

Hungary 06

Germany

Slovakia 07

Spain

Bulgaria 08

Austria

In the final, Elina Avanesyan got Russia off to a strong start with a 6-3 6-3 win over Kristina Dmitruk. Oksana Selekhmeteva struggled in the second set, but came out of her tussle with Viktoriya Kanapatskaya a 6-2 3-6 6-4 victor. With the final already decided, the Russians were handed a walkover in the doubles and were able to begin their celebrations early.

Notes from Tennis Europe Tennis Europe’s Annual General Meeting will be held in Budapest, Hungary, from 22nd – 24th March. A full report will follow in the next issue. Ms. Elena Organ has been elected President of the Moldovan Tennis Federation. The latest edition of ‘Pro Stringer Magazine’ from the European Racquet Stringers Association (ERSA) is now online.

Contact Us TENNIS EUROPE Zur Gempenfluh 36 CH-4059, Basel Switzerland Tel: +41 61 335 9040 Fax: +41 61 331 7253 Email: contactus@tenniseurope.org Web: www.TennisEurope.org To subscribe to Tennis Europe News, simply send an email to contactus@tenniseurope.org

Tennis Europe and HEAD renew partnership Tennis Europe has extended its partnership with leading equipment manufacturer HEAD through 2017, launching a second decade of cooperation between the two organisations. As premier partner of the European Tennis Federation, HEAD has been recognised as the Official Racquet, Tennis Ball and Tennis Bag since 2007, and is heavily involved in Tennis Europe’s junior activities. Under the terms of the agreement, HEAD is promoted as the Recommended Ball of the Tennis Europe Junior Tour, which consists of well over 360 international tournaments for players aged 12, 14 and 16 & Under, with events held in almost all 50 of the member nations of the International Tennis Federation’s largest regional association. The partnership swings into action this week, when the sport’s largest indoor team competition, the Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD, will see more than 190 national junior teams in action across the three age categories. HEAD will also continue to serve as title sponsor of the 12 & Under summer team event, the Tennis Europe Nations Challenge by HEAD, and as Official Partner of the Tour’s most prestigious individual events, the European Junior Championships, and the season-ending Tennis Europe Junior Masters.

Tennis Europe President Vladimir Dmitriev said, “We are delighted to announce this extension to our successful partnership. HEAD’s commitment to the development of the sport, as well as to connecting with and offering opportunities to the next generation of leading players is unquestionable, and together we have been able to bring new services to players, tournament organisers and federations. We look forward to another year of growth on the Tennis Europe Junior Tour.” Ottmar Barbian, Executive Vice President of HEAD Racquetsports commented, “Tennis Europe is a trusted partner for HEAD, not least because of their invaluable efforts to promote and develop the sport of tennis. Together, we support the next generation of tennis players and we are excited to continue this productive partnership in 2018.” For further information about HEAD, visit head.com

Tennis Europe Junior Tour HEAD Ball Sweepstake

Additional prizes go to Peter Rohsmann of the 16 & Under Jugend Cup in Renningen/ Rutesheim, Germany, who wins a HEAD racquet, and Antonio Fringuelli of the 16 & Under Foligno tournament in Italy, who will receive a HEAD TIP Mini Tennis kit. Congratulations to all the winners.

Prizes have been awarded to the winners of the 2017 HEAD Ball Sweepstake. All tournaments that use the balls of the Tennis Europe Junior Tour’s Recommended Ball Partner, HEAD, are entered to a prize draw. The winner of the first prize for 2017 was Jaume Cors, director of the 16 & Under Memorial Nacho Juncosa event in Barcelona, Spain, who receives two tickets to attend the third day of Roland Garros.

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Tennis Europe flagship senior competition dates and venues confirmed Tennis Europe has announced the dates and venues for two of the region’s flagship senior tennis competitions – the European Senior Championships and European Senior Club Championships. The announcement follows the completion of an open bidding process, which led to three-year agreements with the new hosts of each event. The European Senior Championships will be moving to Pörtschach in Austria, during the week of 11-17 June. The Regional Closed (RC1) event is Europe’s most prestigious in terms of ranking points and will see all men’s and ladies’ age categories in action (35-85). After a one-year break, the European Senior Club Championships are heading back to the award-winning La Manga Club resort in Spain, where the event was successfully held from 2012 to 2016.

Further information including the tournament fact sheets will be released in due course. For further information, please contact Nadja Koran.

Calendar

The event will be staged over two weeks, with the ‘Super Senior’ 60-75 age groups in action first, from 9-14 September. They will be followed by the 35-55 age categories, from 17-22 September.

11-17 June 2018 European Senior Championships, Pörtschach (AUT)

One of the biggest events in European tennis, last year’s competition attracted a total of 92 teams, comprised of 470 players. The tournament is open to national club champions and runners-up from each of Tennis Europe’s 50 member nations.

17-22 September 2018 European Senior Club Championships 35-55, La Manga Club (ESP)

9-14 September 2018 European Senior Club Championships 60-75, La Manga Club (ESP)

European Beach Tennis Championships to be held in Latvia Tennis Europe has announced that the twelfth edition of the European Beach Tennis Championships will be held in Latvia later this year. The event, which is being held for the first time in a Baltic nation, will be staged from 12-15 July in Jurmala, and has been extended to take place over four days. A junior competition for players aged 18 & Under will be held alongside the main event.

ber nations compete for men’s, women’s and mixed doubles titles. Entry forms and further information will be sent to member nations in due course.

The 2017 competition saw a total of over 150 players from 19 countries in action, culminating in victories for Italian pairs that went on to finish the season as world #1s; Luca Cramarossa & Marco Garavini and Federica Bacchetta & Giulia Gasparri. The European Championships is a closed event at which players representing Tennis Europe’s 50 mem-

Lilov & Eala set course for stardom at Les Petits As

In the boys’ event, the top seed Mikhail Gorokhov (RUS) got off to a shaky start against the unseeded Serbian Nicola Zekic with a three-set win, after which he saw off two French players in succession, although again struggled against William Jucha. In the quarterfinals he blasted past sixth seeded Croatian Mili Poljicak with a straight sets victory, which then put him on track for a clash against the seventh-seeded Matthew William Donald (CZE), who he beat in even more emphatic fashion. The champion of the previous week’s Category 1 event in Bolton, fifth seed Victor Lilov, came through some very tough matches to reach his second final in eight days. His route to the semi-finals was by no means a cakewalk, having been pushed to a deciding set in all but one of his matches. With huge audiences watching the action throughout the week at the venue and online, the final was played in front of a packed house. It proved to be a tight encounter, with Lilov scoring a break to seal the first set 6-4. The Russian edged ahead in the second set, only to be brought back to 5-5. With both players holding serve

The 36th edition of the celebrated ‘Les Petits As Mondial Lacoste’ event was held recently, with a new crop of youngsters hoping to add their names to tournament’s illustrious list of past champions. Amongst a field of the world’s best 14 & Under players, Victor Lilov and Alexandra Eala stole the headlines, setting themselves up as players to watch. Lilov, particularly, is on a scintillating run, having won back-to-back Category 1 events.

Boys’ champion Victor Lilov celebrates.

comfortably the match went to a tiebreak and with a backhand that sailed long off the Russian’s racquet, the title went to the Bulgarian-American 6-4 7-6(1). The girls event contained a number of big draw cards including, the top seeded Russian Tennis Europe Junior Masters champion, Diana Schnaider, as well as her compatriot, the second seed Erika Andreeva. However all eyes in the first round were on unseeded local player by the name of Maelie Monfils. Tweets, messages and cheers from the crowd were all going the way of the younger sibling of the popular French ATP player. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, as she fell at the first hurdle, with her wildcard Polish opponent, Natalia Michta, playing stronger tennis. Oceane Babel was another local hope who failed to make inroads, also making a first round exit.

The Russians were not having much better luck, as the top seed was taken out in the quarterfinals by seventh seeded Czech Linda Noskova, while Andreeva lost in the second round. The Czech player was in dazzling form, making her way to the final without ceding a single set. In her semi-final match she overcame the Bolton champion, Katja Wiersholm, with 4 games being all the American could muster.

Girls’ champion Alexandra Eala (PHI).

The bottom half of the draw was quickly torn wide apart. Andreeva fell to Belgian qualifier Sofia Costoulas who was then quickly dealt with by Alexandra Eala of the Philippines. The wildcard recipient, part of last year’s

Lilov & Eala set course for stardom at Les Petits As

Tennis Europe Junior Tour Doubles Team of the year, took advantage of her fantastic form to then go on to beat unseeded Japanese Kyoka Kubo followed by Hungarian 13th seed Katerina Dimitrova, setting up a final against Noskova. The final proved to be a classic battle, with Noskova first to make a hit, taking a close first set. The Filipina struck back to take the second set. The match went down to the wire, with Eala getting the upper hand in the third set tiebreaker and closing out the match 5-7 6-3 7-6(5) thanks to a Noskova error. In the girls’ doubles, Noskova got the better of Schnaider yet again as they met in the second round with their respective partners. Noskova and compatriot Linda Fruhvirtova made their way to the final, where they ran away with the trophy. In the decider, they faced American wildcards Robin Montgomery & Katrina Scott. After

a 7-6(6) 6-3 win, the Czech pair were able to hold the trophy aloft. The boys’ doubles title went to Lilov & Evan Wen (USA) who made up for their loss in last week’s Bolton final with a win in Tarbes. The pair were emphatic victors over the Italian wildcards Niccolo Ciavarella & Daniele Minighini, with a resounding 6-0 6-3 win in the final. Combining the wins in Tarbes and in Bolton, Lilov’s ranking has shot from nowhere to Top 20 after winning two of the Tour’s toughest events and accumulating an 11/0 win/loss record. Still just 12 years old, girls’ champion Eala looks set to make more waves on the Tennis Europe Junior Tour this season, and we’re looking forward to seeing what she does next. For full results from Tarbes, please click here, or to view a photo gallery, click here.

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Introducing the «Team Mouratoglou»! For the 2018 season, two of the most promising prospects on the ATP World Tour, Stefanos Tsitsipas (the second youngest player in the top 100) and Alexei Popyrin (the 2017 Roland-Garros Boys’ champion), will be united under the same banner. Here are their latest feats: Thanks to its ideal location between Cannes and Monaco, its state-of-the-art infrastructure (including 34 clay and hard courts, a medical center and a fitness center) and its mild climate unique to the French Riviera, the world’s best professional tennis players — such as Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic, Grigor Dimitrov, Andy Murray or Milos Raonic — have chosen the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy as the ideal training ground to perfect their game and prepare for ATP/WTA tournaments. In some ways, the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy serves as a global hub for professional players, from juniors to world number ones… under the eyes of professional tour aspirants in our youngsters. You will want to be one of the latter, and we’ve got you covered. Thanks to more than 20 years of experience in organizing tennis camps, we’re offering you the ultimate training experience. At the Academy, you will be able to combine practicing (tennis and fitness) with playing some of the many tournaments held in the region. You will also benefit from the Mouratoglou method, based on an individual follow-up and the belief that every player is a «project on its own..»

Tsitsipas reached the quarterfinals in Doha (ATP 250) and the semifinals in Quimper (ATP Challenger). His season-best win came against Richard Gasquet, the No. 5 seed in Doha.

Popyrin was awarded a wildcard into the Australian Open after qualifying for the Sydney ATP 250 tournament, with his first two top 100 wins. He also got a wild-card into the Marseille ATP 250 qualifying draw, and broke into the top 500 for the first time.

TRAINING CAMPS

EVERY SINGLE WEEK mouratoglou.com - info@mouratoglou.com +33 483881430

Tennis Europe Junior Tour Brand Hub The winners of the 2017 Tennis Europe Junior Tour Brand Hub competition have been announced. Throughout the year, tournament organisers that used our customisable free-of-charge tool to promote their events on social media and in print were eligible for our grand prize draw. First prize of a trip for two to Roland Garros 2018 was awarded to Richard Joyner of the Junior International event in Bolton, Great Britain. Runner-up prizes went to Lucas Bolten (Koblenz 12&U Junior Open), Tiago Parreira (Azores 14&U), Patrice Le Cojan (TIM Essonne 14&U) and Erkki Kumpula (Kaleva Open). To be eligible to win prizes in 2018, simply use the Tennis Europe Junior Tour Brand Hub tool to give your tournament as much visibility as possible. The range of available assets includes templates for posters, magazine/brochure articles, social media posts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram), leaflets/flyers and e-mail footers. Check out the Tennis Europe Junior Tour Tournament Director download page or contact Filip Kollar (filipk@tenniseurope.org) for further information.

Introducing... Diana Shnaider & Victor Lilov In the first of a new series of interviews of Tennis Europe Junior Tour stars, we spoke to Europe’s 14 & Under #1 Diana Shnaider as she prepared to lead the Russian team at the Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD finals in Rakovnik.

Tennis Europe: Congrats on a great start to the season! How did it feel to win the Category 1 ‘O1 Properties Christmas Cup’, and to be ranked #1 in Europe? Diana Shnaider: I like being the first. It is my accomplishment, but it is also hard work and a responsibility. How do you prepare yourself for big tournaments like these? Every month, I choose only one tournament and prepare for it. I try to do my best in training and at the tournament too. How is your training schedule? Is it difficult to combine school, friends and family with tennis? I train two hours a day and six days a week, but I always have one weekend which I spend with my family and friends. It is cool.

A member of the travelling American squad that visited Category 1 events in Bolton and Tarbes earlier this year, Victor Lilov has made a big impact on the Tennis Europe Junior Tour, winning both events in commanding style. We caught up with him to find out more about this promising player… Tennis Europe: Tell us a bit more about your background? In which part of USA do you live? Victor Lilov: I live in Raleigh, North Carolina, with my parents, my sister, and my cat. I was not born there, I’ve moved around quite a bit. My parents are from Bulgaria, but I was born in Canada. My family moved to the USA just before my third birthday, so I actually grew up in the USA.

It is very difficult to complete school, friends and family with my tennis commitments, but I have one weekend and I try to do everything I can then. Do you like the international experience that playing the Tennis Europe Junior Tour gives? What do you like the most from travelling abroad and in which country do you like to play or train? Of course, yes. I like to see other countries, make new friends and discover about their culture… and taste local dishes! Of course, I prefer to train in Russia, but I haven’t tried the experience of training in other country. I would like to play where there is the sun and warm weather! How do you feel about playing in the Tennis Europe Winter Cups by HEAD? Do you prefer to play team events or individual tournaments? I am glad to play individual tournaments as well as team competitions. Team events are special, I love the ceremonies, being able to stand on the podium and to hear the national anthems. What does tennis mean to you? It is my big LOVE and my whole life! Which are your goals for this year and your career? I would like to improve the level of my play, show my best tennis and to please my family, team and fans.

When did you start playing tennis and what is it for you? I started playing tennis when I was around 3. Tennis is what I love the most. I’ve dedicated a lot of time and effort into tennis, and I love doing it and hope to continue for many years. It means a lot to me. Is it complicated for you to combine tennis and studies? Yes, it is pretty tough, especially when you are travelling around playing tournaments. But I go to an online school, and that makes it easier to finish my lessons. Even if it is difficult, good thing is that many of my friends also play tennis so they understand. What do you like from traveling abroad to play? Are you planning to play any other of our tournaments in Europe again? It’s cool to see different places and to play kids I don’t usually get a chance to play. It is exciting and yes, I played a tournament last year in Messina and I really liked it. If I have the opportunity I will definitely go back.

Introducing... Diana Shnaider & Victor Lilov Why did you decide to play on the Tennis Europe Junior Tour? Les Petits As had a US Playoff for 4 spots and I competed in that and got on the team. I really wanted to compete in Les Petits As, it’s an event I had always wanted to be a part of. Regarding your last tournaments, how do you feel after winning Bolton and Tarbes? It feels great winning both events, especially Les Petits As since it’s such a prestigious tournament and since I had heard about the tournament so much as I was growing up.

How did you feel in your last match against Gorokhov before winning the tournament? To be honest, I was pretty nervous. I had never played in front of such a big crowd for such a big title, so of course I had plenty of butterflies. Gorokhov is a very good player, so I just tried to stay concentrated and cool the entire time. Which are your goals for this year and your career? My goal for this year is to continue to improve my game. For my career, I want to be a very good pro player.

Service Line... stories you may have missed EVENTS Draws have been announced for the 2018 Fed Cup by BNP Paribas World Group and World Group II playoffs, due to be played on 21-22 April. The World Group sees Belarus host Slovakia, Romania host Switzerland. The Netherlands travel to Australia while Italy will host Belgium. In the World Group II, Russia hosts Latvia, Spain hosts Paraguay, Ukraine travels to Ukraine and Great Britain will be visiting Japan. The Chinese city of Shenzhen has emerged as the winner of a bidding process to host the WTA Finals, and will host the season-ending championships for ten years, starting in 2019.

DEVELOPMENT 29 players from 20 countries have been selected to receive 2018 International Player Grand Slam® Grants financed by the Grand Slam Development Fund (GSDF). The Programme, now in its second year, will provide total funding of $650,000 to selected players from around the world as a contribution towards their competition-related costs, with the aim of helping them to develop as professional tennis players and compete in Grand Slam tournaments. Amongst the players to receive the $25,000 grants are Europeans Magdelena Frech (POL), Dalma Galfi (HUN), Valentini Grammatikopoulou (GRE), Hubert Hurkacz (POL), Edan Leshem (ISR), Kamil Majchrzak (POL), Sebastian Ofner (AUT), Rebecca Peterson (SWE), Zsombor Piros (HUN), Casper Ruud (NOR), Ipek Soylu (TUR), Fanni Stollar (HUN), Viktoriya Tomova (BUL), Elias Ymer (SWE), Mikael Ymer (SWE) and Tamara Zidansek (SLO).

PLAYERS Michael Stich and Helena Sukova have been elected for induction to the International tennis Hall of Fame in July. By winning the Rotterdam title recently, Roger Federer returned to the world #1 spot and moved three titles away from another milestone – 100 tournament victories. Jimmy Connors holds the all-time record for tournament wins with 109. Alongside new coach Slava Konikov, Victoria Azarenka will return to the WTA Tour at the Indian Wells tournament next month. Fellow new-mum Serena Williams has also accepted a wild card to return to action in the Californian desert.

SPONSORSHIP Novak Djokovic has signed an endorsement deal with footwear brand Asics, while Simona Halep has joined Nike’s team of top athletes. Roger Federer, meanwhile, has renewed his agreement to serve as global ambassador for Mercedes-Benz. And Grigor Dimitrov is the new face of Häagen-Dazs ice cream. Samsung is the new title sponsor of the WTA tournament in Lugano, Switzerland, due to be played from 9-15 April.

COACHING Recently-retired world doubles #1 Martina Hingis has taken on a role as Fed Cup Coach with Swiss tennis. Conchita Martinez has taken on a role as advisor to the team of Garbiñe Muguruza.

Tennis Europe Junior Tour Rankings - Overall Tennis Europe’s junior ranking system is devised to give a unified overall list that shows the relative strengths of all players, regardless of where they achieved their results or picked up points. A player’s overall total includes points from Tennis Europe Junior Tour 16 and 14 & Under events, plus points earned by players in these age categories who participate in ITF Junior Circuit and professional tournaments, all of which are weighted according to their relative strengths. The 14

& Under ranking is still available separately (see next page), as well as being integrated to these overall rankings. For more information on the rankings system, check out the Tennis Europe Junior Tour Rules and Regulations at www.TennisEurope.org. The ‘Race to the Masters’ rankings are also available separately, and include points earned exclusively at Tennis Europe Junior Tour events. Rankings below are as of 20th February 2018.

Overall Girls’ Ranking Name

Nat.

Points

Whitney Osuigwe

USA

3252

Marta Kostyuk

UKR

2391

Okasana Selekhmeteva

RUS

1878

04 NEW Weronika Baszak

POL

1270

05 NEW Alexa Noel

USA

1260

06 NEW Viktoriya Kanapatskaya

BLR

1230

07 NEW Dorka Drahota Szabo

HUN

1153

08 NEW Daria Frayman

RUS

1120

09 NEW Darja Vidmanova

CZE

1115

10 NEW Alina Charaeva

RUS

1113

Name

Nat.

Points

Dalibor Svrcina

CZE

1338

Anthony Genov

BUL

1200

ITA

1175

Rank

Marta Kostyuk (UKR)

Rank

03 NEW Luca Nardi 04

Oleksiy Shestakov

UKR

1135

Lukas Neumayer

AUT

1095

06 NEW Matas Vasiliauskas

LTU

1020

07 NEW Piotr Pawlak

POL

1013

08 NEW Harold Mayot

FRA

973

09 NEW Peter Fajta

HUN

940

10 NEW Marat Sharipov

RUS

913

Overall Boys’ Ranking

Anthony Genov (BUL)

Tennis Europe Junior Tour Rankings - 14 & Under Tennis Europe’s junior ranking system is devised to give a unified overall list that shows the relative strengths of all players, regardless of where they achieved their results or picked up points. A player’s overall total includes points from Tennis Europe Junior Tour 16 and 14 & Under events, plus points earned by players in these age categories who participate in ITF Junior Circuit and professional tournaments, all of which are weighted according to their relative strengths. The 14

& Under ranking is still available separately, as well as being integrated to the overall rankings. For more information on the rankings system, check out the Tennis Europe Junior Tour Rules and Regulations at www.TennisEurope.org. The ‘Race to the Masters’ rankings are also available separately, and include points earned exclusively at Tennis Europe Junior Tour events. Rankings below are as of 20th February 2018.

Name

Nat.

Points

Diana Shnaider

RUS

945

02 NEW Erika Andreeva

RUS

725

03 NEW Linda Noskova

CZE

685

04 NEW Barbora Palicova

CZE

660

05 NEW Matilda Mutavdzic

GBR

635

06 NEW Alexandra Petric

ROU

625

07 NEW Dasha Plekhanova

CAN

620

08 NEW Ada Piestrzynska

POL

570

09 NEW Katerina Dimitrova

BUL

550

10 NEW Evialina Laskevich

BLR

550

Nat.

Points

01 NEW Mikhail Gorokhov

RUS

690

02 NEW Mili Pojicak

CRO

490

03 NEW Constantinos Koshis

CYP

465

04 NEW Konstantin Zhzhenov

RUS

455

05 NEW Artur Kukasian

RUS

430

06 NEW Cesar Bouchelaghem

FRA

410

07 NEW Togan Tokac

TUR

395

08 NEW Matthew William Donald CZE

385

09 NEW Filip Pieczonka

POL

385

10 NEW Dino Prizmic

CRO

381

Rank

14 & Under Girls

Erika Andreeva (RUS)

14 & Under Boys Rank

Name

Filip Pieczonka (POL)

Tennis Europe Junior Tour Results 2017 Tennis Europe Junior Tour - 12 & Under Week

Venue