Woodford Wells Club hosted their Junior Open Tournament during the recent Autumn Half-Term holiday. The Grade 3 event, now in it's 32nd year, was supported by over 200 players in events ranging from 8 & Under to Open. Many of the entrants were also involved in Winter National Tour events that same week, so play was of a high standard.
Severe storms hit the south of the country at the start of the week and Woodford was no exception. The schedule was affected but, thanks to the hard work of the groundsman and a small group of Wells' members, the 12U and 16U events got through to the final stages on Wednesday. Special mention should also be mate to The Connaught Club for allowing use of their indoor courts at short notice for the 8U event.
The 12U finals saw wins for Daniel Martin, defeating Cameron Isbell 7-6, 6-1 in the Boys' event, whilst Annali Olivelle took the Girls title with a walkover against Tiegan Aitken who unfortunately sustained an injury in her semi-final victory.
The Boys' 16U title was won by Max Battista, who beat top seed Dominic Lea 6-3, 2-0 (ret'd). Constandena Nicolaou won the Girls event with a 6-3, 6-2 win over unseeded Zeniece Hall.
The 8U event was run as a Mixed Singles event and was won by Oliver Brooker, with Josh Ioannou as the runner-up.
The 9U events proved extremely popular with large entries in both Boys' and Girls' events. Christopher Smith beat Dhruv Velani to take the Boys' crown whilst Alaia Rubio-Perez beat Given Roach to take the Girls' title.
The latter half of the week saw play in the 10U, 14U, 18U and Open events. Whilst the storms had now passed, rain was still an issue and our thanks go to Harlow LTC for giving us use of their indoor courts to enable us to complete the semi-finals on Friday.
The 10U Boys' event was won by Oliver Tarvet, defeating Thomas Drayton in the final. The Girls' event was won by Maddie McLoughlin, with Ella Wood the runner-up.
Ivan Bennett secured the 14U Boys' title with a straight sets victory over Andrew Watson, whilst Worthy Goldman took the Girls' event with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Phoebe Collins.
Max Battista contiued his good form from the early part of the week to secure two further titles with victories over Louis Lee-Allan in the 18U final and Jay Sinnadurai in the Open final.
Thanks to all involved in enabling the tournament to take place, and also to the players and parents for their patience in what were at times challenging circumstances.
We look forward to seeing you again next year!