Rising star Benjamin Mitchell has claimed his second ITF Pro Tour title this year with an impressive performance in Melilla, Spain.

After claiming his maiden title on home soil in South Australia in March, Mitchell was pushed to three sets by fellow Queenslander Michael Look (Scarborough, Qld) in the quarterfinals and enjoyed a walkover in the semifinals against third seed Michael Ryderstedt (SWE) before producing an impressive straight sets victory against local favourite Roberto Ortega-Olmedo (ESP) in the final, 6-3 6-1.

Currently ranked No. 418 in the world, the result marked Mitchell’s best result abroad on the ITF Pro Tour to date and added to his strong results on home soil in the past twelve months.

“This is a great result for Ben and fully deserved after some great work on the practice courts in the last three weeks,” said AIS tennis head coach Brent Larkham.

“He had lost a few close matches recently and this will put those out of his mind.

“Ben will now join the training camp for the Davis Cup squad in England, and I’m sure he has his sights set on making the team as soon as possible.”

As a junior, Mitchell broke into the ITF world top 20 in July 2010 after reaching the final of Junior Wimbledon last year.

His notable success on the ITF Pro Tour follows the recent efforts of 19-year-old James Duckworth (Gordon, NSW), who claimed two titles in as many months in Europe this year.

Both players are currently members of the AIS Pro Tour Tennis Program, a targeted training program to support the transition of junior players into senior ranks. Athletes are given world-class coaching, physical and medical support as they travel the world on the tennis tour.