This year’s ITF/Tennis Europe 16 & Under Team recently completed a 5-week tour of Italy and Denmark. The Tour began on 30th May with a training camp held at the Sporting Club in Montecatini, where the team of 4 girls – Anastasiya Klymenko (UKR), Petia Arshinkova (BUL), Vera Lapko (BLR), Anastasia Detiuc (MDA) – and 4 boys Aleksandre Bakshi (GEO), Antreas Aravis (CYP), Kenneth Raisma (EST), Aliaksandr Halinko (BLR) - practiced together for three days. The training camp gave the opportunity for the players and their coaches Irena Chichmarova (BLR) and Goran Shevchenko (MKD) to get to know each other before competing at four of the top Tennis Europe and ITF Junior Tour events of the summer, kicking off at the Category 1 Montecatini event and followed by the prestigious Avvenire tournament in Milan. After these two 16 & Under Tennis Europe events, the Team moved on to Denmark and continued their tour at two ITF Grade 4 and 5 tournaments in Odense and Aarhus.
The first tournament had the feel of a ‘warm up’, as the players started to accomplish goals that were set during the training camp. All of the team members showed great desire to implement what they had learned and to develop new skills. Anastasiya Klymenko reached the quarter finals before losing to the Italian Francesca Brancato 6-2 7-5, while Detiuc & Lapko reached the doubles final before being edged to the title by Russian pair Polina Golubovskaya & Valeriya Yushchenko 6-4 4-6 10-8.
At the second tournament in Milan all of the players found their rhythm and began to show improved performance. Again, Anastasiya Klymenko showed her potential and after winning over her Team mate Anastasia Detiuc in quarters, reached the singles semi-final eventually losing to Anna Gabric (GER) 6-1 6-2. In the singles event Vera Lapko also reached the quarters but lost to home player Verena Hofer 6-4 6-2. In doubles event, Petia Arshinkova and Anastasiia Klymenko lost in the final to Czech pair Denisa Cichova & Marketa Vondrousova 7-5 6-4.
In the third week, the Team continued to Denmark to participate at the Grade 4 ITF Odense Cup tournament. Vera Lapko once again reached the quarters of the girls singles event losing to Australian Kimberly Birrell 2-6 7-5 6-0, while the boys Bakshi, Aravis and Raisma all reached the third round of their singles event. In the doubles tournament, Arshinkova & Klymenko reached the semis but lost to Aussies Hon/Birrell 4-6 6-2 10-6.
The final week of the Tour proved to be the most successful, with most of the players producing their best form at the Deloitte Junior Cup in Aarhus. Aleksandre Bakshi reached the final of the boys’ singles but lost to Christian Sigsgaard (DEN) 6-3 6-1. Anastasiia Klymenko beat team-mate Petia Arshinkova 5-7 6-3 6-4 in the semis but fell to American Angela Kulikov 6-4 6-2 in the championship match. The other players also made notable results in singles; Vera Lapko reached the quarters yet again, while Raisma and Halinko lost in the third round. In the doubles event, ITF/Tennis Europe Team members claimed both the boys’ and girls’ titles: Aliaksandr Halinko & Aleksandre Bakshi won the boys’ final over Danish players Johannes Ingildsen & Jonas Zacho Larsen 6-2 7-6(3). Petia Ashinkova & Anastasiya Klymenko once again illustrated their doubles talents to win the girls’ event, also against Danish opposition, beating Emma Haakansson and Julie Noe 6-2 6-3.
The team coaches, Goran Shevchenko and Irina Chichmarova were delighted with the players’ day by day improvement and the team spirit shown during the Tour. The Tour provided an opportunity for these players to compete at some of the best events in the world for 16 & Under players as well as the chance to compete at strong ITF 18& Under tournaments. Aside from the practice, the high level of tennis and the possibility to create lasting friendships with players from around the world will surely help in their future tennis careers.