Four new national singles champions have been crowned at the 2024 12/u and 14/u Australian Claycourt Championships held at the Canberra Tennis Centre.
Ana Maric (Vic) was a standout in the 12/u competition, defeating Piyushi Bandara (ACT) 6-4 6-1 to claim the girls’ singles title.
Maric, who also triumphed alongside Lara Wu (SA) in the girls’ doubles event, won all nine matches she contested throughout the championships, losing only a single set.
“It’s been a great week. My main thing in the final was to stay positive and keep pushing through on those moments I was down,” Maric said.
In the 14/u girls’ competition, second seed Emilie Chen (NSW) defeated fifth seed Tori Russell (Qld) 7-5 6-3. Chen also paired with Vesna Marinkov (NSW) to win her fourth national doubles title.
“Feels so good to be champion. I’ve made semis and finals before but never got the win, so to walk away with a win is great,” Chen said.
In other singles finals action, second seed Christian Joseph (Qld) overcame top seed Tommy Camus (ACT) 6-3 7-6(8) to win the 12/u boys’ championship, while top seed Ethan Domingo (NSW) defeated second seed Flynn Coventry-Searle (NSW) 7-5 6-2 to win the 14/u boys’ championship.
The finals were a fitting end to a tournament that has hosted 128 players from around Australia over the past week, giving all the opportunity to play for national titles and gain valuable experience.
The tournament was broadcast live, with matches from the show court streamed exclusively on KommunityTV for five days, with two courts streamed on finals day.
“We have had a great week here in Canberra for the 12/u and 14/u Australian Claycourt Championships,” Tennis Australia Head of Competitive Play and Professional Events Francis Soyer said.
“Congratulations to all of the players who have participated in the tournament and our thanks to the team at the Canberra Tennis Centre and Tennis ACT for their generous hospitality, time and efforts.”
2024 12/u and 14/u Australian Claycourt Championships title winners
12/u Singles
Boys: [2] Christian Joseph (Qld) d [1] Tommy Camus (ACT) 6-3 7-6(8)
Girls: [1] Ana Maric (Vic) d [7] Piyushi Bandara (ACT) 6-4 6-1
14/u Singles
Boys: [1] Ethan Domingo (NSW) d [2] Flynn Coventry-Searle (NSW) 7-5 6-2
Girls: [2] Emilie Chen (NSW) d [5] Tori Russell (Qld) 7-5 6-3
12/u Doubles
Boys: [3] Jiacheng Andrew Chen/Sebastian Lavorato (NSW) d
Johan Abdullah/Arrush Gaikwad (NSW) 6-1 6-7(2) [10-4]
Girls: [4] Ana Maric (Vic)/Lara Wu (SA) d
[3] Piyushi Bandara (ACT)/Danica Todorovic (Qld) 6-2 6-3
14/u Doubles
Boys: Hayato Sata/Jonathan Zhang (Vic) d
Scott Hong/Oliver Lam (NSW) 6-4 7-6(3)
Girls: [2] Emilie Chen/Vesna Marinkov (NSW) d
Aimee Jin/Valentyna Rosa (NSW) 6-4 6-2
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