Manders survives marathon final
final in the highlight of the Craig Bean Memorial Junior Tennis Tournament which concluded at Port Royal Tennis Club yesterday.
Manders eventually triumphed 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, after Masters had fought back strongly from the brink of a straight-sets defeat.
Manders cruised through the first set, moving his opponent around the court with his precision, and led 4-2 in the second set.
Masters' flat, angled forehands then began to reap dividends as Manders seemed to tone down his attacking game and he forced a tiebreaker, which Masters won 7-5 after trailing 1-3. At 4-4 in the third set, Manders stepped up his game, but Masters worked himself into the ground to force a second tiebreaker, which Manders eventually won 8-6.
Masters didn't go home without a title however, after he defeated Kris Frick 6-3, 7-6 in the boys' 14-and-under with a great display of tennis strokes and mental toughness to win 11-9 in the decisive tiebreaker.
Frick also enjoyed success, in winning the boys' 12-and-under final against Larson Grimm by an emphatic 6-0, 6-0 margin.
And Frick also teamed up with Andrew Paynter to win the boys' 12-and-under doubles with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Wills Fallon and Johnny Holland.
The girls' 10-and-under final was won by Cayla Cross, who outlasted Katherine Fallon 8-5.
Sisters Kara and Zoe Fisher were on opposite sides of the net in the mixed doubles final, in which Kara and Masters beat Zoe and Manders 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
McKenzie Bean won the trophy for outstanding sportsmanship.