SOME of the best up-and-coming tennis talents from around the world are set to convene in the kingdom later this month as Bahrain Tennis Club (BTC) hosts the 10th Bahrain ITF Juniors Championships 2018 at its premises in Juffair.
The tournament is a part of the prestigious International Tennis Federation (ITF) Juniors Circuit, and it will be taking place from October 22 to 27 on BTC’s hard courts.
A main draw of 32 boys and 32 girls aged 18 and below will be vying for their respective singles titles. There will also be a boys’ doubles and girls’ doubles, each of which will feature a maximum of 16 pairings.
Prior to the tournament proper, there will also be some qualifying matches played.
Mann Shah of India and Hala Khaled of Egypt were crowned champions of their respective singles divisions in last year’s tournament. Shah clinched the Boys’ Singles crown after defeating Alexandros Roumpis of Greece 6-2, 6-4 in their final; while Hala clinched her Girls’ Singles title her after final opponent Weronika Pociej of Poland retired early in the second set of their championship-decider.
BTC had the privilege of organising the championship for the first time in the history of Bahrain in October of 2009. It was a strategic move by the club’s officials, who have always dreamt of taking tennis in Bahrain to an international level.
Since then, the championship in Bahrain has become a staple on the ITF Juniors Circuit, and it is one of the top tournaments to look forward to each year. It attracts many players from all over the globe, and has achieved greater success than projected. It has also helped gain a good reputation and support from the high authorities in Bahrain.