Jack Keyes and Tariq Simons to face off in Deloitte Open final
Jack Keyes and Tariq Simons will face off for the second year running in the final of the Deloitte Open Tennis tournament at Pomander Gate on Saturday.
Last year’s champion Keyes, who had a bye in the round of 16, defeated Hugh Seymour and Denzel Hollis on his way to booking his spot in the final and the 30-year-old is not expecting a Saturday stroll in the park against Simons.
“It’ll be tough again,’’ Keyes said.
“It was tough last year and he was meant to be going to Davis Cup last year, but we’re now both going next week together.
“I’m looking forward to another good match ahead of us travelling to Paraguay next Thursday.
“The semi-final was a good match. Denzel Hollis came out pretty strong in the beginning, hitting some good deep balls. He stayed in the rallies and made a few errors and that allowed me to win the match.”
Keyes conceded that Simons is the fitter player, which means he has to craft strategies to counter his lack of speed on the court.
“He’s incredible fit and his speed is unbelievable,’’ Keyes said.
“I’m not going to beat him through hitting him off the court. My approach will really be just stay in the rallies and be as consistent as possible. I’ve to maximise on short balls and try to hit some good returns.
Simons has been forced to play one extra round but has not dropped a set en route to the final. He won 6-3, 6-0 against Evan Heyliger in the round of 16 and swept past Jaden Jones 6-0, 6-0 in the quarter-finals before recording a 6-2, 7-6 triumph over his Davis Cup team-mate, James Finnigan.
The 23-year-old believes he is in a better space than he was last year as he chases a maiden Deloitte Open title.
“I’ll prepare better as last year was a difficult time for me because I was dealing with things off court.
“I wasn’t prepared last year and he was better at the time that we played so he won.
“I’m looking to pay a great deal of attention for this time so that I’m prepared to get the win.
“It’s been a smooth tournament and I’ve been fairly comfortable. I’m looking to do better than last year, so I’m looking to win the event.”
In the women’s A final, which will be played on Thursday evening, Jess Charles takes on Nadhira Durham.
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