Bermuda will be keen to make early inroads when they face Dominican Republic in their opening group B match at the ITF World Junior Championships pre-qualifier in El Salvador today.

Representing the island in the under-14 age group are Zach McGuire, Tobiah Goodchild and Johnny Bart, who are all making their international debut.

The trio took advantage of an opportunity yesterday to acclimatise to the high-altitude training with Panama, who are playing in group A.

“The Bermuda team ended up having a day off and they used that to have a joint practice session with Panama,” Michael Wolfe, the Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association president, told The Royal Gazette. “They did some drills, some training and ended up playing some mini sets really just to get used to the environment down there.

“The team really appreciated having the extra day off, as it gave them more time to adjust to the altitude.

“They have been working on shaping their shots, like more spin on the ball just to help with the adjustments in the altitude. They came off the courts from the practice feeling pretty good.

“They were happy with the way they were hitting the ball and coach Neal Towlson was happy with their progress.”

Bermuda’s contingent also took advantage of an opportunity to scout group rivals Dominican Republic and Trinidad & Tobago.

“They watched them for a bit and are very excited about getting into the matches,” Wolfe added. “They are looking forward to that and obviously there’s probably a little nervous energy there as well. But they are overall pretty excited and looking forward to start.”

The championships will be contested outdoors on the hard-court surface at the Centro Nacional De Tenis in San Salvador and run until Saturday.

It involves 15 teams from the Concacaf region competing for spots in a second round of qualifying to be held in Mexico.