Pretoria, South Africa – Petro Kruger of Boland continues to make big impression on the international seniors tennis circuit. In the women’s +70 at the recently played Super Seniors World Individual Championships at Orlando, Florida, USA - Kruger reached the singles and doubles semi-final, and won the mixed doubles title.

72-year-old Kruger, seeded four in the singles lost in the last four of the tournament to second seed, Sylvie Galfard-Kirsten of France, 4-6 2-6. Kruger then teamed up American partner, Susan Kimball to reach the doubles semi-final. Second seeds Kruger/Kimball lost to the American duo, and third seeds, Brenda Carter and Betty Wachob 6-7(3) 3-6.

However, in the mixed doubles, Kruger and her partner, Petr Kolacek of Switzerland clinched the title, beating Australians, Carol Campling and Alan Gooch easily 6-3 6-0 in the final.

South Africa’s number one singles and doubles ranked player (in her age group), is ranked 14(singles) and 6(doubles) in the world seniors rankings

Pretoria, South Africa –Tennis South Africa (TSA) has hailed its rising young star, Lloyd Harris, after he was nominated in the Newcomer of The Year category at the 2017 SA Sport Awards.

The awards, which are to be held at Emperors Palace in Johannesburg, on Sunday 12 November, see Harris as a finalist alongside Keshav Maharaj (SA cricket) and Sokwakhana Zazini (SA athletics).

The 20-year-old, from Cape Town, has enjoyed an impressive 2017, after recently reaching a career high ATP ranking of 199. The youngster was also one of just fourteen players from across the world, who were selected to receive the first ever International Player Grand Slam Grants - awarded by the International Tennis Federation, earlier this year.

In addition, Harris, who made his Davis Cup debut for South Africa in 2016, and has since represented the country in 5 ties – winning 8 out of 10 matches, was unbeaten in the international team tennis competition this year, as South Africa won promotion to Europe/Africa Group One.

Tennis South Africa CEO, Richard Glover, lauded Harris for his progress and dedication: “Lloyd is a rising star of both SA and world tennis and we are very proud of his achievements. This recognition is testimony to both his talent and hard work, as well as the sacrifices that he, his family and his support team have made. On behalf of both tennis players and fans across South Africa, we wish to congratulate him on his nomination.”

“I am honoured and delighted to have received the news, here in Japan, which is the cherry on top of what has been a most successful year for me,” concluded Harris.

Johannesburg, South Africa - Netball South Africa (NSA) has announced a strong and experienced SPAR Protea team for the Quad Series presented by SPAR to be played in England and South Africa later this month.
Former Under-21 player Shadine van der Merwe is the only new cap in the 12-member squad, which was announced on Friday during a training camp in Johannesburg.
Head coach of the SPAR Proteas Norma Plummer said she was very happy with the standards achieved by the players at the training camp.
“It’s always difficult to maintain your fitness at this time of year,” said Plummer.
“There was no club netball over the festive season and the players had to work on their own fitness programmes. I was very impressed with the amount of work they were able to put in. They did an excellent job of keeping fit.
“We played several matches yesterday and this morning, and with only 16 players in the training camp, they had very little time off, but were able to keep up the intensity,” she said.
Plummer said she was excited about shooter Danelle Lochner, who was part of the team that went to the Quad Series in Australia and New Zealand last year.
“She was in the team for the Under-21 World Cup in Botswana last year, and was included in the training camp after the SPAR National Championships. She forced her way into the team. She is a very strong player and she doesn’t back away,” said Plummer.
“Another player who impressed me was Ina-Marie Venter. She is so much better than she was in the Quad Series last year. She is proof that travelling with the senior players pays off. She looks much more experienced now, and she had the best shooting figures at the training camp.
“It is also heartening to see how well Maryke Holtzhausen has recovered from her knee injury. She appears to be stronger than ever. Unfortunately, Siggie Burger did not have the match fitness she needed, but she is going to England to play in the Super League there, and we are expecting great things from her when she gets back.”
The SPAR Proteas leave for London on Tuesday for the English leg of the Quad Series, where they will play the Australian Diamonds on Saturday January 20. The four teams then travel to South Africa for the South African leg, which will be played at the Ellis Park Indoor Arena. The Proteas will play the New Zealand Silver Ferns on Thursday January 25 and the England Roses on Sunday January 28.
Ends

Tickets

Tickets for the Quad Series can be bought at Computicket.
Thursday 25 January 2018 :
• R30.00 per person per day
• Sunday is R30 for two matches our present to supports

Sunday 28 January 2018 :
• R30.00 per person

SPAR Protea netball team
Bongiwe Msomi (capt), Karla Pretorius (vice capt), Erin Burger, Izette Griesel, Maryke Holtzhausen, Danelle Lochner, Phumza Maweni, Precious Mthembu, Lenize Potgieter, Shadine van der Merwe, Ina-Marie Venter, Zanele Vimbela
Head Coach : Norma Plummer
Assistant Coaches : Elsje Jordaan, Nicole Cusack
Manager : Nisha Rupnarain
Medical : Nande Mjajubana
Analyst : Cristy Mullender

Johannesburg, South Africa – For the first time in many years there will be two South African-born tennis players in the main draw of a Grand Slam event.

The 2018 Australian Open first-round draw has pitted 11th seed, Kevin Anderson of South Africa against Britain’s Kyle Edmund in Monday’s opening match on Court 3 at Melbourne Park. Both Anderson, 31, and Edmund, 23, were born in Johannesburg.

Edmund, with a world ranking of 49, will be Britain’s highest ranked player at the Australian Open and is the British No 2 behind the injured, Andy Murray. He had a career-high ranking in October 2016 when he was 40th in the world.

The Edmund family emigrated from South Africa to England when Kyle was three years old.

Anderson is the favorite to triumph in Monday’s ‘Battle of the Joburg-borns’ by virtue of his strong form in recent months. Last September, Anderson reached the US Open final and he’s enjoyed a few wins over higher world rated players since.

Edmund will be playing in his only second Aussie Open whereas Anderson will be appearing in Melbourne for the fourth time although injury forced him to miss the last two tournaments (2016, 2017). From 2013 to 2015, Anderson went out each time in the fourth round.

Last year, Edmund went out in round 2 at the Aussie Open.

There is also another strong SA connection at the Aussie Open. The Durban-born Craig Tiley is the Director of the Australian Open.

Tiley attended Bryanston High School, in Johannesburg, and later captained the South African Davis Cup team.

As the Australian Open tournament director over the past few years, Tiley was highly praised by players including former world No 1s Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka.

Thanks in the main to Tiley’s entrepreneurial skills, the Australian Open has become one of the biggest annual sporting events in the southern hemisphere.

Johannesburg, South Africa -The head coach of the SPAR Proteas national netball team, Norma Plummer, says the Proteas have a lot of work to do in the SANZEA Quad Series, involving Australia, New Zealand, England and South Africa.
Speaking shortly before the team left for London for the fourth leg of the series, Plummer said Australia and New Zealand had played a number of Tests since the second and third legs in September last year.
“England have also played a number of Tests, so the other three teams are match ready,” said Plummer.
“That is a bit concerning, but I was very pleased with the training camp we have just had. The players had worked hard on their individual programmes during the break, and their fitness levels were good. But it is disappointing that we weren’t able to arrange any international matches.
“We will be playing against the Australian Diamonds on Saturday. They are the reigning world champions, and it is important for us to be as competitive as possible against them,” she said.
“We are steadily closing the gap between us and the two top teams, Australia and New Zealand.
“We play the New Zealand Silver Ferns and the England Roses in Johannesburg the following week and we are working towards good results in both matches.”
South Africa beat England 54-51 in their last Quad Series encounter, at Invercargill, New Zealand.
Plummer said the Commonwealth Games on the Australian Gold Coast were just around the corner and the players had a lot to do ahead of the Games.
“We are planning matches against Australian league teams ahead of the Games. We need some tough practice matches to get the players into the right frame of mind,” she said.
“We are lucky that seven of our best players will be playing in tough overseas leagues between the Quad Series and the Commonwealth Games. Two will play in Australia, one in New Zealand and four in England. That extra experience will be invaluable for the whole team.”
Ends
SPAR Quad Series Schedule:

Thursday January 25 19:00pm SPAR Proteas vs New Zealand Silver Ferns
Sunday January 28 12:00pm Australian Diamonds vs New Zealand Silver Ferns
14:30pm SPAR Proteas vs England Roses

FILLUPELLISPARK

Tickets for the Quad Series can be bought at Computicket.

Thursday 25 January 2018 :
• R30.00 per person per day
• Sunday is R30 for two matches our present to supports

Sunday 28 January 2018 :
• R30.00 per person

Pretoria, South Africa – KIA South African Davis Cup Captain, Marcos Ondruska, has named an unchanged squad to take on Israel, from the 2-3 February 2018, at Irene Country Club outside Pretoria.

The KIASA Davis Cup squad selected by Ondruska is Lloyd Harris, Nik Scholtz, Ruan Roelofse, Raven Klaasen and Tucker Vorster. Former elite doubles player, and current ATP tour coach, Jeff Coetzee, will act as the coaching consultant for the team.

Meanwhile, two of the country’s most promising young players - Philip Henning and Siphos Montsi - will join the squad as hitting partners, in order to gain Davis Cup experience. Henning (17) is currently in Australia preparing to play in the Junior Australian Open. Last week the youngster from Bloemfontein impressed by qualifying for the Traralgon Junior International, beating world number 8 ranked junior, Nicolas Mejia, of Colombia, in the opening round. Siphos Montsi (18), who was a hitting partner with the squad during last year’s Davis Cup home tie versus Slovenia, also rose to prominence Down Under, when his play at the 2017 Junior Australian Open saw him hailed by Judy Murray, the mother of Andy, as a future star.

Ondruska told the media on a conference call from Seattle, USA on Wednesday that consistency was key to the recent success of the team and the players named had done South Africa proud in 2017.

“I think it’s going to be the most interesting tie that we’ve played in the recent past. The guys in the squad are as ready as they can be. They have had a good December and January getting their bodies ready for the demands of Davis Cup as well as their year around tournament play. We look forward to the first round and we’ll bring the performance we’ve been bringing to the table for an exciting tie.” Said Ondruska.

Lloyd Harris of Cape Town, ranked 291 in the ATP world rankings, is South Africa’s second highest ranked world singles player behind Kevin Anderson (12). This is Harris’ sixth Davis Cup selection. Harris played a key role in South Africa’s win over Denmark in Aarhus, Denmark last year winning both his singles rubbers which secured South Africa a 3-1 promotional victory. During 2017, Harris was undefeated in Davis Cup winning all six of his singles rubbers, in the three ties played.

26-year-old Nik Scholtz of Boland is likely to be nominated by Ondruska as the team’s second singles player. Scholtz, ranked 326 in the ATP world rankings, is enjoying a fine run of form at present, having reached a Futures final in Egypt, before capturing two Digicall Futures titles in Stellenbosch at the end of last year.

Raven Klaasen (ranked 25 in the ATP world doubles rankings) and Ruan Roelofse (ranked 143 in doubles) are the doubles specialists in the team. The duo have formed a formidable Davis Cup combination and are unbeaten in the six matches they have played together.

Pretoria born Tucker Vorster completes the squad. Vorster has played five ties for South Africa (in both singles and doubles) and is experienced back-up for the team.

Tickets for the KIA South Africa vs. Israel Davis Cup tie can be purchased through webtickets on www.webtickets.co.za and/or at Pick n Pay stores for R150 per person, per session. Pick n Pay smartshopper card holders get a ‘buy 1 get 1 free’ option online or by booking their tickets in store.

Pretoria, South Africa – South African junior tennis stars made an impressive start to the year when they clinched the boys and girls under 14, and girls under 16 titles of the Southern Africa Junior Championships in Gaborone, Botswana. The boys under 16 were losing finalists.

South Africa’s girls under 14 and 16, and boys under 14 now qualify for the African Team Championships being played in March 2018.

FINALRESULTSOFTHESOUTHERNAFRICAJUNIORCHAMPIONSHIPS;

Boys
Under 14
South Africa bt Namibia 3-0
Singles
Rohan Loubser (RSA) bt George Louw (NAM) 6-0 6-0
Devin Badenhorst (RSA) bt Joshua Barnard (NAM) 6-0 6-3

Doubles
Rohan Loubser / Marnus Oosthuizen (RSA) bt George Louw / Joshua Barnard (NAM) 6-1 6-2

Under 16
Mauritius bt South Africa 3-0
Singles
Jason Espitalier-Noel (MRI) bt Carl Roothman (RSA) 6-3 7-5
Christopher Fok Kow (MRI) bt Damien Nezar 7-5 3-6 10-6

Doubles
Christopher Fok Kow / Jason Espitalier-Noel (MRI) bt Carl Roothman / Connor Kruger (RSA) 6-4 4-6 10-5

Girls
Under 14
South Africa bt Zimbabwe 2-1
Singles
Heike Janse Van Vuuren (RSA) lost to Nicole Matukutire (ZIM) 6-3 6-4
Line Greyling (RSA) bt Claire Machisa (ZIM) 6-3 6-3

Doubles
Heike Janse Van Vuuren / Naledi Manyube (RSA) bt Nicole Matukutire / Claire Machisa (ZIM) 6-0 6-2

Under 16
South Africa bt Zimbabwe 3-0
Singles
Jessica Portwig (RSA) bt Tsitsi Mahere (ZIM) 6-4 6-4
Rochelle Pienaar (RSA) bt Rufaro Magarira (ZIM) 3-6 6-4 10-5

Doubles
Mikayla Loubser / Jessica (RSA) bt Vimbai Moyo / Tsitsi Mahere (ZIM) 6-2 6-2

Johhanesburg, South Africa - The SPAR Proteas achieved their best ever result against Australia in their SANZEA Quad Series match at the Copper Bowl in London on Saturday.
The Australian Diamonds won the encounter 54-50, for their smallest winning margin over South Africa and the Proteas, who were 26-25 ahead at halftime, forced them to step up a gear in the final minutes to clinch the victory.
Australia won the first quarter 15-12, but the Proteas never let the Diamonds get away from them, with the goal difference never more than four goals.
With two minutes left in the second quarter, goalshooter Lenize Potgieter scored to bring the Proteas level on 24-all. The two teams exchanged goals, and then, with 20 seconds left in the first half, Potgieter scored again and the Proteas were 26-25 ahead at half time. They won the second quarter by 14 goals to 10.
The Diamonds brought on two new shooters in the third quarter, with Caitlin Bassett and Susan Pettitt replacing Caitlin Thwaites and Gretel Tippett, and they gradually drew back into the lead. They were 38-36 ahead at the end of the third quarter.
In the final quarter, Australia stepped up a gear as they fought to retain their dominance over the Proteas. But the South Africans were not giving up and threw everything they had into the match. Midway through the quarter, they once again drew level with the world champions on 45-all. The Australians fought hard and in the final five minutes of the match, began to pull away from the Proteas, with a succession of five unanswered goals. Potgieter and goal attack Maryke Holtzhausen came back with their own flurry of goals, before Bassett and Pettitt scored three in succession. With 15 seconds to go, Holtzhausen scored to limit the goal difference to four.
Goalkeeper Phumza Maweni had an outstanding game, with a number of intercepts, while wing attack Bongi Msomi appeared to be everywhere on the court. Her performance earned the South African captain the player of the match award.
“I am so proud of the team,” said Msomi.
“Every time we step on the court against the top teams, we reduce their winning margins. I am also very proud that we played at the same intensity for the full hour. We are growing with every match, and we believe we can beat the very best,” she said.
“It was such a great team performance that I would like to divide this medal, so that we can all share it.”
Coach Norma Plummer was delighted with the team’s performance, particularly as they had not played any internationals since the last Quad Series tournaments in New Zealand and Australia, while the two top teams had both played a number of Tests.
“We used to lose by 50 goals,” she said.
“The top teams need to look out – South Africa is right up there with them.”
The Proteas take on the New Zealand Silver Ferns at the Ellis Park Indoor Arena at 7 o’clock next Thursday evening. They play the England Roses at the same venue at 2.30 pm on Sunday. Tickets are available from Computicket.

Melbourne, Australia – Despite the early exits of Kevin Anderson and Raven Klaasen at the Australian Open last week, the South African flag is still flying high at the first Grand Slam of the year in Melbourne.

In the Boys Junior Australian Open, Philip Henning of Bloemfontein won through to round 3 of the junior Grand Slam on Tuesday.

Henning, a Grey College learner, upset 9th seed and world’s number eight junior ranked player, Thiago Seyboth Wild of Brazil 6-4 6-4 in the second round. In the opening round, Henning beat George Loffhagen of Great Britain in a tight two sets 7-6 (5) 7-5.

It’s been a fabulous tour “down under” for the 17-year-old Free Stater. Henning qualified for the pre Australian Open warm up junior tournament, Traralgon Junior International where he went on to beat Nicolas Mejia of Colombia, ranked nine in the junior world rankings, 6-0 6-2 in the main draw.

Henning did not make the final cut of the Australian Open Junior main draw so was forced to play in the qualifying rounds. Henning won through two gruelling rounds of qualifying and was one of 8 players to qualify for the main draw proper in Melbourne.

“I can’t believe that I am into the third round of the Aussie Open Junior” said a clearly elated Henning following his victory. “It has always been a dream to play in a Grand Slam and that dream is now a reality. I hope to continue my good form for the rest of the week.”

Allan Karam, the Tennis South Africa (TSA) National Coach travelling with Henning said that Henning played aggressive from the baseline. “Phillip is really playing well and his aggressiveness is working well on the hard courts here in Melbourne. Today his returning game was on point and a key to his win as his opponent had a big serve. The few opportunities thrown at Philip by Seyboth Wild, Philip capitalised on and this gave him the advantage throughout the match. Philip also served well, never lost serve the entire match and used his all-round athletic ability to cover the court.”

In the third round on Wednesday, Henning will play American, Sebastian Korda. The two have never played each other before.

Henning is also still in the boys doubles with partner Andrew Paulson of the Czech Republic. The two upset top seeds, Sebastian Baez (Argentina) and Thiago Seyboth Wild (Brazil) 2-6 7-6 (5) 14-12 to move into the quarterfinals.

The only other South African participating the Australian Open Juniors is Myah Petchey of Cape Town who lost final round qualifying but was given a lucky loser spot into the main draw but lost in round one to American, Nicole Mossmer.

Watching Henning from the side-lines were two former South African greats, Wayne Ferreira and Jeff Coetzee who both were impressed by Henning.

Coetzee, who was recently announced by TSA as one of their high performance coaches said that Henning was a real talent and his mental game was his real strength. “Philip is one of the best junior players South Africa has produced in a while. He has dominated back home and now is doing well on the international stage having beaten the world’s number 8, 9 and 24 ranked juniors. The exciting thing is that there is so much Philip can still improve on. He can still be more aggressive on the short ball, improve his net game and movement which will make him a more complete player and enable him to compete with the very best in the world” said Coetzee.

Johannesburg, South Africa – Some of the best club tennis players in South Africa will take to the courts of Sun City this weekend, for the national final of the inaugural Growthpoint Top Guns.

The Growthpoint Top Guns is a national club competition launched last year by Tennis South Africa (TSA), with aim of helping to revive the heartbeat of the tennis community in the country - club tennis.

Growthpoint partnered with TSA to sponsor the event, that was played by hundreds of tennis clubs across the country, with the 14 regional winners progressing to the national finals to be played at Sun City in the North West Province from 16 – 19 February. The 14 regional winners are joined by two wild-card teams from under-serviced communities - making the tournament a 16 team showdown. The 16 teams will be drawn into four group each of four teams. A round-robin will be played in each of the four groups, with the group winners qualifying for a cross-over semi-final knock out stage

All participating teams will enjoy complimentary travel and accommodation for the weekend - courtesy of Growthpoint and TSA.

The winning team at the national final wins R30 000 for their club, as well as a further R30 000 to be divided between the players. The losing finalists win R10 000 for their club, as well as a further R10 000 to be divided between the players.

The 16 finalists for the 2017/2018 Growthpoint Top Guns national finals are confirmed as follows:
1. Boland: Strand Tennis Club.
2. Buffalo City (Border): Old Selbornian (Old Boys) Tennis Club.
3. Eastern Province: Cradock Tennis Club.
4. Eden: Wesbank Tennis Club.
5. Free State: University of the Free State Tennis Club.
6. Gauteng Central: Marks Park Tennis Club.
7. Gauteng East: Parkrand Tennis Club.
8. Gauteng North: Elarduspark Tennis Club.
9. KwaZulu-Natal: Brighton Tennis Club.
10. Limpopo: Polokwane Tennis Club.
11. Mpumalanga: Middelburg Country Club.
12. North West: Klerksdorp Tennis Club.
13. Northern Cape: Lapésa Tennis Club.
14. Western Province: Camps Bay Tennis Club.
15. Wild Card Team 1: Destiny Tennis Club (Buffalo City).
16. Wild Card Team 2: Eersterust Tennis Club (Gauteng North).

Ends

Pretoria, South Africa – The Southern African swing of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) junior tennis circuit has begun in the North West Province sporting town of Potchefstroom this week.
The four weeks of international tournaments for under 18 boys and girls will see three tournaments being staged in South Africa and one in Zimbabwe.
The first of the tournaments, the RVTAPUKKEITF 1 is being played from 12 to 17 February at the University of North West Potchefstroom campus. This will be followed by another Grade 5 event at the same venue, the RVTAPUKKEITF 2 being played from 19 to 24 February.
From Potchefstroom, the tour will move to the county’s capital, Pretoria, for the Brooklyn Union Axnosis ITF, a Grade 3 status tournament, to take place from 26 February to 3 March 2018
The last of the tournaments will be played in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe from 5 to 10 March.
Players from 12 countries, including Belgium, Botswana, France, Great Britain, Israel, Ireland, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Switzerland, and the United States of America have jetted in for the month long tournament swing.
These tournaments are important as they provide South Africa’s leading junior players with the opportunity to earn vital ITF junior world ranking points without having to travel out of Southern Africa.
Ends

Pretoria, South Africa – Tennis South Africa (TSA) in their ongoing commitment to the development of the game in South Africa announced two development wild-card spots for the Growthpoint Top Guns national club finals to be stayed at Sun City this weekend.

Eersterust Tennis Club (Gauteng North) and Destiny Tennis Club (Buffalo City) are the named clubs that will take the last two wild card spots in the 16 club field that will do battle at ‘Africa’s Kingdom of Pleasure’ from Thursday, 16 February to Monday, 19 February.

Eesterust Tennis Club’s Marketing & Communications Manager, Wergelé McKenzie said, “We are truly honored to have received this award from Tennis South Africa as recognition of our passion for the sport and our competitive spirit. None of this would have been possible without the vision of Richard Glover and his team at TSA and the support from Gauteng North Tennis Association to grow the sport in the less developed areas. ‘Team Poort’ are excited to fly the flag for Eersterust Tennis Club and the broader Eersterust community, who have a proud and long standing Tennis heritage, with the Club having been established in 1978. Our involvement in this tournament and the exposure that comes with it will help us put Township Tennis and Eersterust Tennis Club back on the map. With Growthpoint Properties sponsoring the Top Guns, we know that this tournament is built on a solid foundation.”

The 16 teams representing all 14 tennis provinces of the country will be drawn into four Groups - each of four teams. A round-robin will be played in each Group with the Group winners qualifying for the knock-out cross over semis-finals. The finals are scheduled for Monday, 19 February.

The winning team at the national final wins R30 000 for their club, as well as a further R30 000 to be divided between the players. The losing finalists win R10 000 for their club, as well as a further R10 000 to be divided between the players.

Destiny Tennis Club chairman, Camagu Sotyelewa, added, “We really appreciate the opportunity given to our club to participate in the final leg of the Growthpoint Top Guns. We hope our players will do their level best in the final battle of this tournament. Finally, we would like to express our gratitude to Growthpoint Properties and Tennis South Africa for this great opportunity.”

This is the inaugural Growthpoint Top Guns club competition part of last year’s newly announced sponsorship partnership between properly giant Growthpoint and TSA aimed at rebuilding the important club tennis structures in the country.

Ends

Potchefstroom, South Africa – Semi-final results of the RVTA Pukke ITF 1, an international junior world ranking tennis tournament being played at the Riaan Venter Tennis Academy on the North West University Potchefstroom campus, South Africa on Friday.

RSA unless stated

Singles
Semi-finals
Boys
Murphy Cassone (USA) bt Axel Garcian (FRA) 6-3 6-2
3-Kholo Montsi bt 2-Pierre Malan 6-1 6-2

Girls
Tilwith Di Girolami (BEL) bt Kelly Arends 6-1 6-2
5-Maja Gledic bt 8-Tamsin Hart 3-6 6-3 6-4

Doubles
Semi-finals
Boys
Alexander Hoogmartens (BEL) / Noah Martens (BEL) bt Maikel De Boes (BEL) / Raynaud Vanwolleghem (BEL) 6-3 6-4
2-Robbie Arends / Kholo Montsi bt 5-Thando Longwe-Smit / Victor Putter 7-5 6-2

Girls
Margaux Komano (FRA) / Helena Mohamed (FRA) bt 1-Megan Basson / Myah Petchey 6-7(5) 6-2 10-7
3-Megan Lombardi / Linge Steenkamp bt Mika Dagan Frunchtman (ISR) / Lorin Tilipman (ISR) 6-4 7-5

Ends

Potchefstroom, South Africa – There were two first time international title winners when the RVTAPUKKEITF 1 junior tennis tournament was concluded on Saturday.

South Africa’s Kholo Montsi and Belgium’s Tilwith Di Girolami were crowned the boys and girls singles champions with both winning their respective finals in straight sets.

Montsi of Cape Town, seeded three - beat unseeded American, Murphy Cassone, a qualifier 6-2 7-6(1) in his final.

In hot, dry conditions, Montsi started well - breaking the strong Murphy serve in the first and fifth games and held serve throughout to win the opening set 6-2. In the second set, Murphy lifted his game, and a frustrated Montsi trailing 2-3 punched the fence after a string of unforced errors cutting his hand which resulted in a medical time out. The set went with serve until the tie breaker, which was dominated by Montsi winning it 7-1 which secured him game, set, match, and first major junior title.

“I am very happy to have won. I worked really hard for it and I’m proud of the way I played and conducted my attitude and behaviour throughout the tournament” said Montsi

15-year-old Montsi said that his game plan for the final paid off, “I told myself to hold serve and play freely and tough throughout.”

In Friday’s semi-final, Montsi caused a major upset when he beat fellow South African, second seeded, Pierre Malan impressively 6-1 6-2, “The win over Pierre was big and I told myself that I had to finish off the tournament week with title win after beating Pierre. Pierre is a good friend and training partner and the win over him gave me the added confidence I needed for the final.”

In the girls singles final, Di Girolami outsmarted her South African opponent, Maja Gledic 6-4 6-3 in 1 hour 35 minutes.

It was a dream run for the 14-year-old Belgian from the city of Bree, who had to qualify for the main draw and then grind her way through as the underdog to the final. Di Girolami, part of the Belium Tennis High Performance programme at “Tennis Flanders” did not drop a set all tournament. The Beglian also beat two seeded players in sixth seeded, Angela Georgieva and fifth seeded, Maja Gledic en route to winning the title.

Di Girolami was never troubled by Gledic in the final and moved the ball short and long which clearly frustrated Gledic, a consistent player who relies on outrallying her opponents in normal circumstances, “Maja plays a slow, loopy and very consistent game so I had to move her around and bring her into the net where she isn’t comfortable to have any chance,” admitted Di Girolami.

“I am delighted and feeling great to have won my first international title here in Potchefstroom. I had to qualify which allowed me to get used to the high altitude conditions, and I used the altitude to my advantage - playing aggressively” continued Di Girolami.

The boys doubles title went to second seeded, Kholo Montsi and Robbie Arends both of Cape Town. Montsi and Arends beat unseeded Belgians Alexander Hoogmartens and Noah Martens and 6-4 6-3.

Unseeded French pairing of Margaux Komano and Helena Mohamed won the girls doubles title when they upset third seeded South African’s Megan Lombardi and Linge Steenkamp 7-6 (1) 6-2.

Ends

Johannesburg, South Africa – South Africa’s Kevin Anderson made his seeding count as the tournament No. 1 when he won the ATP New York Open with a 4-6 6-3 7-6 (1) win against the No. 2 American, Sam Querry in Uniondale, New York, on Sunday.

The title will be Anderson’s fourth career ATP title but the most significant of his career as it propels into the top 10 of the latest world rankings which was released on Monday. He has now slot in at a career-high No. 9.

Anderson’s last ATP title was in 2015 when as a wildcard – he saw off Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert in the final at the Winston-Salem Open in North Carolina, United States.

On his way to the final, Anderson overcame some testing encounters.

“Obviously, you go out there – the quicker and easier you can win, the better,” Anderson said about a few long matches in the run-up to the championship round.

“But, I think I can take a lot of confidence in the way I was able to come through those close matches. I was tested, every single match went to three sets, three of the four matches went to 7-6 in the third and I played some of my best tennis when it mattered.

“I think if you can come through those matches, you can really take a lot of confidence. My body responded well, that is always a big positive.”

“I was able to keep on resetting and it was definitely a good testament to my attitude and my mindset which I work very hard on.”

Winning the New York final was rather meaning for Anderson as he already suffered 11 defeats in ATP Tour finals.

“I have been runner-up quite a few times in my career. One of the big goals I had for this year was to try to be a bit more successful in that final stage,” said Anderson.

“It feels great to come through and get today’s win. It gives me a lot of confidence for the year.

“Definitely feels very good to clear that last hurdle and walk away with the title. I’ve had a lot of very close matches this week.

I think my body has responded very well.”

Anderson will next play the Delray Beach Open this week and will be the 3rd seed there. He opens his campaign against Evgeny Donskoy, the Russian who has a career win over world No. 1 Roger Federer (February 2017, Dubai Tennis Championships).

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Pretoria, South Africa – Former professional tennis player, Rene Plant, is working hand-in-hand with Tennis South Africa (TSA) to promote, develop and improve the status of women’s tennis in the country.

On announcing her Fed Cup squad to do national duty in Montenegro from the 16-21 April 2018, Plant said that she had selected a balanced squad to allow South Africa the best chance of gaining promotion into the Euro/Africa Zone Group II of the Fed Cup competition.

Plant announced her squad on Wednesday as follows;

Chanel Simmonds
Madrie Le Roux
Katie Poluta
Minette Van Vreden
Lungile Ntuli

As per the rules of Fed Cup, Plant will have to nominate a four player team from her squad of five ahead of the commencement of the tournament. These four nominated players will then participate as team South Africa for the entire tournament. Changes may be made to the singles and doubles for each rubber played by Plant from the four players.

The team will be playing in the Euro/Africa Zone Group III tournament alongside 20 other countries. The countries have been split into two groups. One group will be playing in Tunisia (10 countries) and the other group in Montenegro (10 countries). The countries at each venue will be drawn into two pools and a round robin will be played within each pool with each tie consisting of two singles and a doubles rubber. The pool winners will then play out for promotion to the Euro/Africa Zone Group II.

Two countries will earn promotion, one team from Tunisia and the other from Montenegro.

The Montenegro tournament will be contested by hosts Montenegro as well as South Africa, Andorra, Cameroon, Finland, Ireland, Kenya, Malta, Morocco and Uganda.

Chanel Simmonds, South Africa’s highest ranked women’s player will spearhead the challenge. After suffering injury early last year, Simmonds bounced back strongly towards the end of 2017 enjoying good runs in Senegal and Stellenbosch at the Digicall Futures.

Doubles specialist Madrie Le Roux, like Simmonds, is a seasoned Fed Cup campaigner. Le Roux has played 18 ties for the country since 2011 and won the African Junior doubles championships back in 2016 with fellow countrywoman, Ilze Hattingh.

Katie Poluta of Cape Town was one of the most promising junior tennis players in the country, consistently ranked in the top 5 of each age group she played. Poluta took up a scholarship with the University of Texas and is presently enjoying a stellar run with the Division 1 NCAA team. Poluta will be making her Fed Cup debut.

Minette Van Vreden, a South African Masters and National champion has dominated the junior game and like Poluta makes her Fed Cup debut.

17-year-old Lungile Ntuli of Cape Town is one of the brightest prospects in women’s tennis in the country. Born in London, Ntuli moved to South Africa with her parents and was based in Pretoria before moving to Cape Town. Ntuli is a provincial player and was selected for the South African High Schools team.

Joining the squad in Montenegro will be former South African Davis Cup player, Tucker Vorster, who will act as hitting partner and Manager and Karen Frye who will be the team physiotherapist.

The squad will travel early to Montenegro to prepare for the Fed Cup clash, acclimatising to the conditions and clay court surface.

Plant confirmed that she would be holding a pre-departure doubles camp using former ATP doubles specialist, Jeff Coetzee, to add value to the doubles games of the selected team, “Doubles are a key part of every Fed Cup tie and we need to leave South Africa knowing that our girls are best prepared for any rubber winning doubles rubber.”

Plant said that her selection process was based on the “Next Gen” idea, “We need to start building for the future. It’s no secret that the women’s game in the country in recent years has been challenged. We don’t have any more players in the top 200 of the world and that makes our efforts in Fed Cup difficult. So either than drawing on the experience of Chanel and Madrie, we’ll need to develop the next generation of players and groom them to assist the country regain its status in women’s tennis.”

The idea Plant has is to draw players from a bigger base being junior, university, senior and professional ranks.

After the Fed Cup in April, Plant, together with TSA - will hold a Fed Cup camp from 28 June – 1 July at the Bryanston Sports Club in Johannesburg. The aim of the camp is to develop some depth for selection opportunities going forward, to get players to network with each other, to create a bigger base of players to work with and to create energy and enthusiasm amongst all the female players in South Africa. A “Next Gen” tournament will be held in conjunction with the camp and this will allow for a few head-to-head results.

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Cape Town, South Africa - SPAR Grand Prix title holder Kesa Molotsane (KPMG), who dominated the SPAR Women’s 10km Series last year, continued her winning ways on Sunday with a comprehensive win in the opening race of the 2018 series at the Bellville Stadium in Cape Town.
Her winning time was 34.10.

Glenrose Xaba (Boxer) was second, in 34.39 and Irvette van Zyl (Nedbank) was third in 35.07. It was an amazing performance by the three-times winner of the SPAR Grand Prix, because she is six months pregnant with her second child.
Christine Kalmer (KPMG) took the lead initially, running just ahead of Maria Shai (Boxer), with a number of runners, including Molotsane and Van Zyl, running in a group behind them.

Approaching the 4km mark, Xaba and Zintle Xiniwe pulled ahead and Kalmer and Van Zyl appeared to lose touch, but at the halfway point, Van Zyl surged ahead of the pack. Xaba and Xiniwe were close behind and for a time, Durbanville runner Olga Firsova took the lead. However, she fell back and Molotsane, who was looking very comfortable, applied her famous kick and took over the lead. She finished well ahead of the rest of the runners.
“It was a great start to the year for me,” said Molotsane, who said she had been suffering from flu after returning from the African cross-country championships in Algeria.

“I only discovered on Wednesday that we weren’t running at Greenpoint, but I liked the route. There were some hills, but it’s not like Johannesburg hills. I think it was challenging, but it wasn’t that hard.”
“I was thinking to go maybe after 7km, because the race really starts at 7km, so I told myself just to relax and then kick.
“When Kesa kicked, I just tried to go with her,” said Xaba.
Van Zyl was beaming at the post race media conference.
“I really enjoyed the race,” she said.

“I was quite confused when I found myself in the lead at the halfway mark. I have been listening to my body and I am very happy with the way I ran today, because I haven’t been training like an elite athlete, as I would normally do.
“The last two kilometres, which were downhill, were easy – I just leant forward and the baby gave me momentum.
“I am doing the Two Oceans half marathon next week, and that may be my last race before the birth. But who knows – I might run the Port Elizabeth SPAR race, if I am still allowed to fly

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Cape Town, South Africa - Kesa Molotsane (KPMG) gave notice of her intention to defend her SPAR Grand Prix title when she cruised to victory in the opening SPAR Women’s 10km Challenge race at the Bellville Stadium in Cape Town on Sunday.
Molotsane dominated the six race Challenge series last year, winning in Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Pietermaritzburg, coming second in Durban and Johannesburg and third in Pretoria – and she intends to do just as well in 2018.
The Cape Town race was moved from the flat seafront course in Greenpoint to a more challenging course in Bellville, where the runners had to contend with a long slow uphill from the third to the seventh kilometre. As a result, none of the top senior runners was able to earn bonus points for running a better time than last year.
Molotsane tops the Grand Prix ladder with 20 points, followed by Glenrose Xaba (Boxer) with 19 and Irvette van Zyl (Nedbank) with 18. Van Zyl, who has won the Grand Prix title three times, in 2010, 2011 and 2016, was runner-up last year, but she is nearly seven months pregnant, which could affect her participation in the other SPAR races.
“The Two Oceans half-marathon next week will probably be my last race before the birth,” Van Zyl told the media after Sunday’s race.
“But I will see how I feel. Maybe I will run in Port Elizabeth in May – if I am still allowed to fly by then.”
Molotsane and Xaba said they had no plans for major races before the Port Elizabeth Challenge race, and would be focusing their attention on preparing for it.
“The SPAR races are very important and I will be taking them very seriously,” said Molotsane.
Xaba, who last had a podium finish in a Challenge race in Pretoria in 2016, said she would be working hard to ensure that she had more top three finishes.
The second leg of the SPAR Grand Prix will be the Port Elizabeth SPAR Women’s Challenge on Saturday May 5th.
The 2018 SPAR Grand Prix calendar is as follows;

Bellville, Cape Town Sunday 25 March 2018
Port Elizabeth Saturday 5 May 2018
Durban Sunday 24 June 2018
Pretoria Saturday 4 August 2018
Pietermaritzburg Sunday 19 August 2018
Johannesburg Sunday 7 October 2018

FORMOREINFORMATIONGOTO
http://www.sparwomensrace.co.za/

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Bloemfontein, South Africa – More than 700 of the country’s top junior tennis players will shortly be heading to the Free State capital, Bloemfontein, for next week’s Growthpoint Junior Nationals.

The six day event kicks-off on Wednesday, 04 April – with the finals scheduled for Monday, 09 April. The Growthpoint Junior Nationals is played across four age groups - under 12, 14, 16 and 18 - at multiple tennis venues in the city.
The Growthpoint Junior Nationals immediately follows on from the ‘warm up tournament’ for the main event, the Growthpoint Free State Super 8 – which gets underway on Thursday, 29 March.
Tennis South Africa (TSA) CEO, Richard Glover, said that the event plays a vital role in the development of junior tennis in South Africa, “The Growthpoint Junior Nationals are a massive event in our annual calendar and provide a real opportunity for young players, across the country, to test themselves against their peers - on a national stage. We are delighted that this year’s field is set to be of one of the biggest in the last ten years. There is no doubt that tennis will be taking over Mangaung in the coming weeks.”
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Pretoria, South Africa – Tennis South Africa (TSA) recently launched beach tennis in the country and promised a bumper line-up of local and international events in 2018. The first of these events is the TSA Beach Tennis Challenge, which will be played at the Rand Show at the Johannesburg Expo Centre, Nasrec from Saturday, 31 March through to Tuesday, 3 April.

In addition to R15 000 in prize money, the tournament has a unique hook – the winners of both the men’s and women’s sections will represent South Africa at the ITF Beach Tennis World Championships, in Russia, in August 2018. On top of this, the winners will also be wild-carded into TSA’s first international beach tennis event - to played under the auspices of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) - during the Arnold Classic in May at the Sandton Convention Centre.

The tournament will be open to the general public, who are attending the Rand Show. In addition, selected action from the Easter weekend tournament will also be streamed live, courtesy of Vodacom Live - via www.vodacom.co.za/beachtennis. Fans will be able to watch the action on Vodacom LIVE from 09h00 to 17h00 on the 1st and 2nd April and from 09h00 to 15h00 on the 3rd April.

The tournament will have a men’s and women’s section. Four pools of four teams will make up the men’s draw with two pools to four teams making up the women’s draw.

Men’s top seeds are Davis Cup player, Tucker Vorster and partner Ryan Brookshaw of Pretoria. They will head up Pool 1. Seeded to meet Vorster and Brookshaw in the final are Reinhard Pelser and Lionel Jarrad, also of Pretoria. As second seeds, they will head Pool 2. Pool 3 will be headed up by Gauteng North coaches Andre van Rijn and Marcel Cillie with Siyabulela Nkachela and Prince Motswenyane of Johannesburg heading up Pool 4. In the women’s section, Lisa van der Riet and Tamara Day of Pretoria head up Pool 1 with Anmarie Lotz and Lindsay Heys, also of Pretoria, seeded 2 - heading Pool 2.

Free clinics will be held on Friday, Sunday and Tuesday for the public to try out the new form of tennis.

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