The ‘Second ATF’ under 14 week 2 tournament which commenced on the 10th of November came to a close on the 14th of November with the exception of the girls doubles final which had to be called off due to bad weather.
Although the above mentioned match was postponed the prize giving was held in order to felicitate the local and foreign players who performed at high standards over the course of the week.
The week 2 tournament was conducted in similar fashion to the first week with a host of matches being played in four events which were the boys singles, boys doubles, girls single and girls doubles. The Gymkhana Club premises once again played host to the players and the only significant change from the first week was that ITF white badge official Mufaddal Hazari took over the role of referee.
The tournament marked a significant stage in the career of the young Japanese player Ryota Fujioka who won a well deserved double by winning both the boys singles and doubles events. The talented and wonderfully agile Japanese player used his great speed and tenacity to overcome all those who stood in his way to put on a wonderful display of tennis which was a treat to the eye. He staged an upset of sorts when he annihilated the bottom seed Arjun Sriram 6-0 6-0 and went on to record straight set victories against Indian opponents in the quarterfinal and semifinal in order to reach the final. In the final he played positive tennis which was true to his style of play that he displayed from day one, in order to defeat his fellow countrymen Kyosuke Oizumi 6-1 6-0. The duo went on to keep the Japanese flag flying high as they strolled through the doubles draw in order to book a final match up against the Sri Lankan pairing of Akith Gunewardena and Thevan Perera who they defeated easily with a score line of 6-1 6-0.
The girl’s singles event was won by Prabuddhi Perera who defeated Anika Seneviratne in straight sets to win the final. The final score line of 6-2 6-4 was a good reflection of the solid and consistent tennis she exhibited throughout the course of the tournament. Prabuddhi also has a chance to mimic Fujioka’s feat of winning a double as she was a part of the doubles final that was called off due to bad weather conditions. Together with her partner Anika Seneviratne they managed to win the first set 6-1 and were leading 1-0 against the pairing of Anya Gunewardena and Sathi Silva before the rains came pouring down. The match is scheduled to be played tomorrow (15th November) at 12.00 am.
Following the calling off of the girls doubles finals the prize giving was held in a simple and laidback fashion at the Gymkhana club premises. The referee Muffadal Hazari welcomed the gathering and also went on to thank the sponsors for their invaluable support. After the awards were distributed to the participants Mr Asanga Seneviratne delivered the vote of thanks. In his speech he acknowledged the fact that tennis is a lonely sport in the sense that you have to face everything on your own. He went onto add that it’s important to ensure that one doesn’t give up no matter what adversity you are faced with as it is your character and strength during trying times that moulds you as an individual.
The papare.com takes this opportunity to congratulate the organizers and the referee on a job well done as well as congratulate all those who participated in the event for putting on a show of great tennis.
