American Juniors Making Waves at the 67th Annual Orange Bowl

December 11, 2013 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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The 67th Annual Metropolia Orange Bowl Junior Tennis Championships has been a fixture of the year-end junior tennis calendar since 1947 and this year’s event promises to add to its illustrious history.

On the boy's side of the draw, top-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany got his title campaign off to the ideal start when he overcame a determined challenge from Brazil’s Gabriel Vellinho Hocevar, 6-3, 7-6. Zverev was joined in the second round by second-seeded Frenchman Sebastien Tatlot, who was a 7-5, 6-1 winner over American Catalin Mateas. American seeds Francis Tiafoe and Michael Mmoh also progressed, as did Burundi’s Guy Orly Iradukunda, a beneficiary this season of the ITF Grand Slam Development Fund, which enables players from developing countries to travel and receive coaching support.

Fourteenth-seed Benjamin Bonzi of France was the only seeded casualty on day one, when he fell 6-2, 6-4 to China’s Weigiang Zheng.

On the girl's side of the draw, American Tornado Alicia Black, seeded third, was among the winners when she beat Dzina Milovanovic of Serbia 6-2, 7-5. Black was joined in round two by Romanian Ioana Ducu (seeded six), the Czech Republic’s Marie Bouzkova and second-seeded Ivana Jorovic of Serbia. The only seed to fall on the girls side was the fourth-seeded Helen Ploskina of Ukraine, who was shocked 6-3, 6-1 by American Sofia Kenin. 

The tournament runs Dec. 9-15 at the Frank Veltri Tennis Center in Plantation, Fla. and, as last year, will be played on clay rather that hard courts.

“The Orange Bowl is one of the most prominent junior tennis tournaments in the world, and we're excited for another year of world-class competition," said Tournament Director Lew Brewer.

The honor roll of the Orange Bowl 18-and-Under singles competition explains why the 2013 contenders are so desperate to make their mark. This year’s winners will join an impressive list, including Chris Evert (1969-70), Bjorn Borg (1972), John McEnroe (1976), Ivan Lendl (1977), Gabriela Sabatini (1984), Mary Joe Fernandez (1985), Jim Courier (1987) and Anna Kournikova (1995). Roger Federer (1998), Elena Dementieva (1998), Andy Roddick (1999), Vera Zvonareva (2000-01), Marcos Baghdatis (2003), Nicole Vaidisova (2003) and Caroline Wozniacki (2005).


Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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