Millfield School pupil’s Finn Bass and Luke Hammond both showed glimpses of their great potential whilst playing at the 16 & under boys draw of the Aegon Junior International.
After their fellow Millfield pupil Giles Hussey was beaten in the qualifying event for the tournament, Bass and Hammond pressed on into the main draw at the National Tennis Centre, London.
Hammond won through to the second round after a 6-4, 6-3 win over Maksymilian Raupuk of Poland. He then met an in-form Ewan Moore, Great Britain, in the second round and was unable to get past his opponent , going down 6-4, 6-1.
Bass, who is no stranger to the junior international circuit, survived a scare in the first round and after being forced to come back from a set down by opponent Giovanni Narcisi, Italy, he was then pushed all the way to a tie-break in the deciding third set. Bass eventually emerged as the victor winning 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5).
His second round match was a lot simpler; Bass took control of the match early on and never looked back, he beat Joe Tyler, GB, 6-1, 6-2 to book his place in the quarter finals where he was due to face wild card entry Vincent Gillespie.
The Millfield pupil’s opponent was on top form going into the match and his standard didn’t falter, giving Bass a huge task to overcome. Gillespie was playing some great tennis and Bass was unable to keep up. He was beaten 6-2, 6-3, ending his run in the tournament.
Both players showed that they are capable of competing amongst some of the best young players in the world and they are sure to take a lot of positives in their performances. Bass can also take solace in the fact that he was only beaten by the eventual champion of the tournament, Vincent Gillespie.
Click Here for more information on the Aegon Junior International.