Young tennis pros to make mark in Cairns
CAIRNS tennis fans will get an opportunity to see one of the world%u2019s top teen prospects when Luke Saville tops the bill at this month%u2019s Australian Pro Tour tournament.
Fresh from his second consecutive Wimbledon boy’s final, Saville will be the top seed at the Cairns International Tennis Centre tournament.
The talented teen is the reigning Australian Open junior champion and recently flagged an intention to solely contest senior events.
The field will also include Fed Cup team member Olivia Rogowska and what tournament director Matthew Richards called a "distinct Asian flavour."
"A lot of girls from China, Japan, Malaysia and Indonesia are travelling to the event,"
Richards said at yesterday’s media launch for the event.
"There aren’t probably as many Australians as we would have liked in the women’s field but it’s going to be a strong competition."
In the men’s event, Saville, a Wimbledon and Australian Open champion in the juniors, is the one to watch.
"For the people of Cairns this will probably be the last chance to see Luke before he really shoots up the rankings," Richards said.
Currently No. 554 in open rankings, Saville will look to emulate fellow former junior champion Bernard Tomic’s rise into the senior ranks.
Australian tennis has a rich history of talented juniors who failed to make the step up.
Mark Kratzmann, Matt Reid, Craig Miller, Shane Barr, Ben Ellwood and Brydan Klein all won junior grand slam events but were unable to enjoy any success in the senior ranks.
While Saville is not expected in Cairns until the pro tour event, which starts on August 25, plenty of pros will be arriving early to participate in the Australian Money Tournament Platinum Event on August 21.
"Isabella Holland is playing in that. Nick Lindahl, Dayne Kelly, they will all be there," Richards said.
"A lot of them are playing that (event) as a lead-up to the pro tour. There hasn’t been a pro tour event since April in Australia, so it’s really important that we’re trying to put on two high quality events for guys to play as lead-up events."
The events are part of the ‘‘tennis carnival," which also includes the Fowler’s Group FNQ Open tournament.
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Net appeal: Former Wimbledon and Australian Open junior champion Luke Saville will headline this month’s Cairns Tennis International.
