Tarbes, France
Mariia Makarova and Michael Antonius have won the singles titles at 14&U Super Category Les Petits As tournament. With the likes of Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune having played on these hallowed courts, this tournament attracts the cream of the crop of junior stars from Europe and beyond. This year, the event’s 42nd edition, was no exception as many players descended upon Tarbes from afar to play in what is arguably the biggest 14&U tennis event in the world.
Singles
Of the eight boys’ and girls’ semifinalists, half hailed from the Americas: three from the US, and one Brazilian. Furthermore, there were many upsets along the way, highlighting the depth of the field in Tarbes. The number one boys’ seed Pavel Oliver Dusek (CZE) was taken out in the second round by Rafael Thao-Keuang (FRA) who in turn fell to eventual finalist Izan Banares (ESP). The number four seed Richard Krizan (SVK) also went home earlier than expected in round 3 at the hands of American Tabb Tuck.
The top girls seed and last year’s 14&U Player of the Year Jana Kovackova (CZE) met a similar fate, bowing out at the quarterfinal stage to the eventual champion, who had also dispatched of current Race to Monte-Carlo leader Victoria Laki (SWE) two rounds earlier.
On an interesting side note, and just as a potential measure of how things stand, Kovackova made light work of last year’s 12&U Festival winner Daniel Baranes (ISR) in the first round. And last year’s Special Achievement Award winner from Latvia, Darina Matvejeva was granted a wildcard and advanced to the second round before losing to American 15th seed Margaret Sohns.
In the end, there could only be one winner, as the final went the way of Makarova, who was too strong for compatriot and doubles partner Ksenia Ruchkina, posting a 6-4 6-3 win. In the boys’ final, Izan Banares got off to a good start, before Antonius evened it up in the second set and ran off with the third, earning his trophy with a 4-6 6-2 6-0 victory.
Makarova now adds title number 13 (six in singles) to her already prolific list of victories on the TEJT. Meanwhile, the American Antonius was playing in his fourth TEJT singles final and claimed a second.
Doubles
There was to be more success for the travelling US entourage with Izyan Ahmad & Teodor Davidov winning the boys’ doubles title, with a narrow 2-6 6-1 10-6 win over locals Quentin Dodin & Thomas Grevoul.
It was to be two finals appearances in Tarbes for Makarova and Ruchkina, who played together in the doubles final the day before they faced off in the singles final. The Russians also won their final by a slim margin over Czechs Kovackova & Katerina Zajickova, claiming the trophy with a 6-2 3-6 10-5 win.
Qualifying
As always, this year’s edition of the tournament got off to a flying start. With many wanting their chance to participate in an event of this calibre, players took part in international and national qualifying for the chance to make it into the exclusive final 64 draw. This draw is packed, with no slots for byes, so simply qualifying for the main draw can be considered a fantastic achievement, especially for the players who did so coming up from the 12&Us.
Junior School
Also taking place before the start of the main draw was the Tennis Europe Junior School. Our staff gave a talk about the Tennis Family, as well as the extremely important issue of Safeguarding. The school ended on a fun and interactive note regarding the subject of Media with players taking part in mock interviews and press conference situations.
Tennis Stars
Spotted at this year’s tournament was former French Open champion Michael Chang whose daughter was a wildcard entrant and managed to advance to R3.
Spanish professional Marc Lopez was also in Tarbes and sent out a special message for us on day 1:
Junior “Grand Slam”
There is no doubt that this is a massive event, with the planning, infrastructure, volunteers, staff and sponsorship involved. This year it is estimated that that between 40,000 and 45,000 spectators were at the venue to witness some of the best Junior action themselves.
Social media was also on point with this tournament, with the qualies as well as the main draw given exceptional coverage on various platforms.
In addition, live streaming was offered from the outset. This is a service we are seeing more and more on the Junior Tour, offered by Tennis Europe as well as some tournaments offering their own streaming and scores.
Remember to download the Tennis Europe Junior Tour App for more access to tournaments with live streaming and live scores.
Elsewhere This Week
Vilar International – 14&U, Category 3
Aizkraukle, Latvia
Austrian Moritz Freitag won the boys’ singles title while top seed Ukrainian Sofia Bielinska won the girls’ singles title. It is Bielinska’s eighth TEJT singles title, while Freitag won his sixth.
Vierumaki Cup 2 – 14&U, Category 3
Vierumaki, Finland
Mark Griaziutin Tverskoj (LTU) and Kara Fronek (AUT) were the boys’ and girls’ winners in Finland. Congratulations to both players, who have each won their maiden 14&U singles titles on the TEJT.
12&U Winter Cups by Dunlop, Qualifying Rounds
Various venues
Read more here.
For photos from Les Petits As, click here.