National Junior Tennis Championships: Discover who triumphed in Bournemouth and Nottingham
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From Monday 19 to Saturday 24 August, Britain's best juniors battled for National Junior Tennis Championships crowns.
Split across two venues, the West Hants Club in Bournemouth welcomed players in the 12&U events (girls' singles, girls' doubles, boys' singles, boys' doubles), whilst Nottingham Tennis Centre staged the competition for all 14&U, 16&U and 18&U events.
Recognised as the pinnacle of the summer domestic calender for young performance players, the competition provides invaluable match experience for players looking to make their mark on the ITF World Junior Tennis circuit, before progressing to the professional tour.
LTA Head of Men’s Tennis and GB Davis Cup Captain Leon Smith spent time in Nottingham to catch some of the action: "When it comes to talent scouting and looking what [talent] is out there, the most important thing is seeing the kids enjoying competing and chasing every single ball."
Event |
Champion/s |
| 12&U Girls' Singles | Mimi Xu |
| 12&U Boys' Singles | Ben Gusic-Wan |
| 12&U Girls' Doubles | Hannah Klugman & Mingge Xu |
| 12&U Boys' Doubles | Pranav Devaguptapu & Benjamin Gusic-Wan |
| 14&U Girls' Singles | Jaquelyn Ogunwale |
| 14&U Boys' Singles | Luca Pow |
| 14&U Girls' Doubles | Isabelle Lacy & Ella McDonald |
| 14&U Boys' Doubles | Ben Hudson & Phoenix Weir |
| 16&U Girls' Singles | Kristina Paskauskas |
| 16&U Boys' Singles | Billy Blaydes |
| 16&U Girls' Doubles | Isabelle Purser & Catherine Hodge |
| 16&U Boys' Doubles | Ronan Lunn & Matthew Rankin |
| 18&U Girls' Singles | Grace Piper |
| 18&U Boys' Singles | Finn Murgett |
| 18&U Girls' Doubles | Danielle Hack & Sally Pethybridge |
| 18&U Boys' Doubles | Ryan Golesworthy & Alex Solonenko |
The 2019 champions join an illustrious roll of honour featuring the likes of singles winners Andy Murray (14&U in 2001), Kyle Edmund (14&U in 2009), Heather Watson (14&U in 2006 and 16&U in 2007), Dan Evans (16&U in 2006), Harriet Dart (16&U in 2011), Jack Draper (16&U in 2016) and Paul Jubb (16&U in 2015).
Who said what?
Jaquelyn Ogunwale, 14&U Girls' Singles national champion, said:
"For me it was just down to my serve, really. My serve helped me start off the points and in the second set it didn't quite go the way I wanted. I was getting a bit frustrated, but in the third set I just sat down and thought what to do. And somehow it just worked out for me and I could play my game again.
"The toughest one would probably be my match against Ella McDonald in the quarters because out of the last two or three times I've played her I've lost. It's always been very close, so for me to pull out the win was a great feeling for me, and I feel that I've improved a lot.
"I want to win a Grand Slam and get to number one in the world. And just make a living playing tennis, because it's what I love. It just feels great to make [my family] proud, for them to be able to watch me do something I love, and for them to celebrate with me as well is just a great feeling."
Billy Blaydes, 16&U Boy's Singles national champion, said:
"I think I played a really good match, to be fair. I started off a bit slow, went a break down. But when I got the break back I just went from strength to strength.
"I felt a bit of pressure [as the top seed] in the first round when I was about to go out, but... I lost the first set quite a lot this week, so I just thought I can just get this back. I didn't feel much pressure, I just wanted to do well."
Also in Nottingham...
A junior wheelchair team tennis event took place alongside the Junior National Tennis Championships. The inaugural event - supported by the Dan Maskell Tennis Trust, Youth Sport Trust and LTA - welcomed 16 of Britain's best junior wheelchair tennis players (aged 12 – 18) from Friday 23 to Saturday 24 August.
Event |
Champion/s |
|
18&U Boys Wheelchair Singles |
Dahnon Ward |
|
18&U Girls Wheelchair Singles |
Abbie Breakwell |
|
18&U Boys Wheelchair Doubles |
Alex Chaston & Gregory Slade |
|
18&U Girls Wheelchair Doubles |
Abbie Breakwell & Martha Harris |
