By Glenys Furness
- Jack Draper continues to rise up the rankings
- Claims third ITF title of the year
- Brit drops only one set en-route
LAGOS, NIGERIA – Jack Draper claimed third ITF title of the year, defeating the top seed in the final to lift the trophy.
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Brit of the Week
Jack Draper was the fourth seed in Nigeria’s largest city. The young Brit had been in Lagos for a second week determined to get back to winning ways. In the first round Draper was drawn against Lance-Pierre Du Toit, the South African was no match for the Brit in the first set. The fourth seed lost only one game to get off to a great start. The second set was a little closer, however it was Draper that moved into the second round defeating his opponent in straight sets 6-1, 6-3.
In the second round Draper was up against fellow Brit Mukhtar Andu. The fourth seed was far too strong for his younger compatriot and dished up a double bagel to Andu. The match was more like a training session for the fourth seed, despite the best efforts of Andu. Draper moved into quarter-final 6-0, 6-0.
The quarter-final saw the Brit against Tyler Lu. The unseeded American struggled in the first set, with the Brit seemingly breaking at will. Lu was unable to break back and only held serve once. The second set saw Lu fighting harder, trying to do anything to get through Draper. The fourth seed stayed firm though and moved into the semi-final 6-1, 6-3.
In the semi-final the Brit was against the fifth seed Danylo Kalenichenko. The Ukrainian stayed close to Draper in the first set, and proved to be the toughest opponent so far. However, Draper managed to secure the break right at the end of the first set. This seemed to break the spirit of the Ukrainian as the Brit strolled through the second set and into the final 7-5,6-2.
The final saw the young Brit up against the top seed. In a rematch of last weeks semi-final Draper was facing Tom Jomby. The Frenchman looked to be going to spoil the party again as he got off to a flying start. The Brit was unable to make an impression in the set and soon the Frenchman was ahead. Draper regrouped for the next set however, and worked out Jomby. Breaking in each of the next sets the Brit managed to secure the win and his third title of the year 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Honourable Mention
Neil Pauffley entered the ITF event in Sharm El Sheikh and was seeded sixth. In the first round the Brit was drawn against Issam Haitham Taweel. The Egyptian got off to the better start and forced a tiebreak in the first set. Pauffley was edged out of the breaker and found himself a set down. The Brit fought back in the second set, securing the break right at the end to level up the match. In the deciding set it was Pauffley who stepped things up and again managed to break the serve of Taweel, moving into the second round 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4.
In the second round the Brit faced Estonian Karl Kiur Saar and once again did not get the start he wanted. Getting broken by Saar in the first set and not being able to break back saw the set gone. However, Pauffley was not done and once again fought back. Having worked out Saar the Brit lost only three more games to progress into the quarter-final 4-6, 6-2, 6-1.
The quarter-final saw the Brit face Italian Marco Brugnerotto. This was a much easier match for Pauffley and he eased ahead of the Italian. Brugnerotto could not come back in either set, only winning a total of four games against the sixth seed. Pauffley eased into the semi-final in straight sets 6-2, 6-2.
In the semi-final the Brit faced the second seed Simone Roncalli. The Italian managed to stay toe to toe with Pauffley in both sets, until the very end of each when the Brit broke through to seal a spot in the final in straight sets 7-5, 7-5.
The final saw the sixth seed against the top seed David Pérez Sanz. Pauffley held the Spaniard to a tiebreak in the first set. In fact it was the Brit that edged the breaker and took the lead. Unfortunately, the Spaniard regrouped and claimed the remaining sets with service breaks to lift the title 6-7(7), 6-4, 6-3.
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Challenger & ITF Round Up
Joel Cannell was defeated by Aziz Ouakaa in the first round in Nigeria 6-4, 6-4.
Isaac Stoute was defeated by Kalenichenko in the first round in Nigeria 6-3, 6-4.
Tiffany William was defeated by Julia Terzijska in the first round in Nigeria 6-0, 6-2.
Finn Bass was defeated by Kai Wehnelt in the first round in Egypt 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-3.
Shamael Chaudhry was defeated by Pérez Sanz in the second round in Egypt 6-0, 6-0.
Emilie Lindh was defeated by Jacqueline Cabaj Awad in the first round in Egypt 7-6(5), 6-4.
Aleksandra Pitak was defeated by Barbara Bonic in the first round in Egypt 6-4, 7-6(6).
Katarzyna Pitak was defeated by Lamis Alhussein Abdel Aziz in the second round in Egypt 6-3, 6-1.
Jay Clarke was defeated by Jordan Thompson in the first round in Fairfield 7-6(3), 6-1.
Dan Evans was defeated by Collin Altamirano in the first round in Fairfield 7-6(2), 0-0 RET.
Brydan Klein was defeated by Dusty H. Boyer in the first round in Australia 7-5, 3-6, 6-3.
Evan Hoyt was defeated by Matthew Romios in the second round in Australia 6-2, 6-2.
Katy Dunne was defeated by Zoe Hives in the first round in Australia 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Gabriella Taylor was defeated by Abbie Myers in the first round in Australia 6-2, 5-7, 6-3.
Jonathan Gray was defeated by Luca Staeheli in the first round in Tunisia 6-4, 5-7, 6-2.
Harry Thursfield was defeated by Louis Tessa in the first round in Tunisia 6-0, 6-0.
Samm Butler was defeated by Robert Strombachs in the quarter-final in Tunisia 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(4).
Mark Whitehouse was defeated by Jeremy Sonkin in the first round in Israel 6-4, 6-1.
Alexis Canter was defeated by Aidan McHugh in the first round in Israel 6-4, 6-0.
Aidan McHugh was defeated by Edan Leshem in the quarter-final in Israel 6-3, 6-2.
Emily Appleton was defeated by Michika Ozeki in the first round in Japan 6-3, 6-3.
Next week Brits play in Antwerp, Stockholm, Moscow, Ningbo, Calgary, Ismaning, USA, Tunisia, Israel, Egypt, Portugal, France, Italy, Japan, Spain & Turkey.
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