27 January 2016 | Tennis ACT

ACT’s Narelle Raftery and Ros Balodis have both won their respective age groups at the Australian Tennis Seniors Championships held in Shepparton.

Raftery took out the 50+ singles age group.  After surviving a tough three setter against Jill Meggs in the first round, Raftery was convincing in her semifinal victory over Ulrike Deutsch-Watson only dropping 4 games.  In the final she faced Diane Cassel, defeating her in straight sets 6-2, 6-3.  Raftery then, combined with Julie Golightly to win all of their three doubles matches in straight sets to win the 40+ doubles title.

Balodis continued her incredible winning streak at the Australian Championships, going undefeated in singles play since her debut in 1998.  The world number 1 dominated the 55+ singles event, dropping only 5 games on her way to the title.  In the final, she defeated Wanda Howes 6-1, 6-0.  She then joined with Leanne Swaysland to dominate the 55+ doubles, losing only 2 games in 3 matches.  Partnering James Coulson, Balodis also added the mixed title to her collection.  In a tight final, they defeated top seeds Eddie Myers and Leanne Scott 6-3, 4-6, 10-8.

In the Australian Tennis Seniors Teams Championships, the ACT Women’s 55+ team took out the title.  The team consisted of Helen Holcombe, Leonie Ainsworth, Chris Fraser, Betty Smith, Marilyn Walter, and Ros Balodis.  The ACT finished in second position for the State Teams trophy.