Mark Ceban (GBR) & Annika Penickova (USA) were both unbeaten in the Tennis Europe 14&U Category 1 event at Bolton last week, capturing both the singles & doubles titles in a great week of tennis.
Top seed Mark Ceban reached the boy’s singles final without losing a set, whilst his final round opponent Marcel Latak (USA) had come through an epic quarter-final encounter with 2nd seed Daniel Jade (LBN) prevailing 6-0 4-6 7-5, before beating compatriot Michael Antonius in the semi-final. It was the American who got off to the faster start in the final capturing the 1st set 6-2, before the power of the top-seeded Brit turned the match around to capture the title with a 2-6 6-3 6-1 victory, with Ceban joining an impressive roll of honour which includes Andy Murray and Francis Tiafoe in its past champions.
13-year-old American Annika Penickova won the girls' singles title without losing a set. She had reached the final after overcoming a tricky semi-final encounter with her twin sister Kristina, whilst her final round opponent top seed Giulia Safina Popa (Romania) had come through a tough 3-set quarter-final against Italian 6th seed Angelica Sara. Penickova was highly impressive in her defeat of the top seed 6-1 6-1 to become the 11th American to win the girls' singles title since the inaugural event in 1995, joining tennis greats such as Coco Gauff & Justine Henin on the roll of honour.
The boy’s doubles title was won by top seeds Mark Ceban & Daniel Jade beating the American pair of Michael Antonius & Jordan Lee 5-7 6-0 [10-7] in a highly entertaining final. Annika Penickova partnered her twin sister Kristina to the girls' doubles title with a 6-3 6-2 defeat of top seeds Sofie Hettlerova & Giulia Safina Popa.
Tournament Director, Richard Joyner commented "After not being able to stage the event due to Covid restrictions in 2021 & 2022, it was great to be back at the Bolton Arena for the 27th edition of this event. It really is a chance to see the stars of the future in action today, with many of our previous participants going on to reach the highest echelons of the world game. This year also saw us live stream matches for the first time which we were really pleased to be able to introduce"