22 December 2014 | Tennis Victoria

Victorian duo Sam Thompson and Masa Jovanovic have defeated top seeded pair Gavin van Peperzeel and Ashling Sumner 4-1 at the Win a Wildcard final today, earning themselves a place in the mixed doubles event at Australian Open 2015.

The competition was played using the shortened tennis format FAST4 and took the Donvale locals less than 20 minutes to secure their win at Melbourne Park.

As part of their prize for taking out the final, their nominated club Ringwood Tennis Club have won a $5000 tennis grant and the pair have earned their place in the main draw of the first Grand Slam of the year complete with full accreditation, transport and access to all player services.

“It’s phenomenal,” an amazed Thompson said.

“It hasn’t quite hit me yet. I think when I get home and tell my friends about it then it might hit me.

“I was a bit nervous, I think Masa was too. From the start we tried to get the idea of winning out of our heads so we didn’t get distracted. I think we were pretty cool and composed going into it.”

Said Jovanovic of her ideal round one match up: “Eugenie Bouchard and Milos Raonic would be amazing. Mixed doubles is a great experience for us so Sam and I are both stoked.”

The pair is sure to have a large local cheer-squad for their round one match which will commence late in the first week of the tournament.

Hundreds of Aussie hopefuls across the country entered the Win a Wildcard competition, designed to encourage grassroots tennis players to chase their Grand Slam dreams.

The competition has also raised money for the National Breast Cancer Foundation and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia with $20 from every individual entry fee donated to these leading cancer research organisations.

Credit Tennis Australia