Canada’s Davis Cup Juniors and Billie Jean King Cup Juniors teams could not have gotten off to a much better start at the North, Central America, and Caribbean qualifying round of the TF World Junior Team Competitions this week at IGA Stadium in Montreal. Both teams decisively won their opening ties over the Dominican Republic on Wednesday.
Every single Canadian nominated to play this week for the U16 and U14 teams played at least one match on the first day of competition.
The Davis Cup Juniors team got off to a brilliant start, sweeping the Dominicans to kick off their campaign. Callum Mackinnon and Antoine Tardif needed just one hour and 37 minutes combined to clinch the tie with a pair of dominant singles wins. Mackinnon beat Daniel Esael Suero Ramirez 6-1, 6-0 in just 40 minutes, while Tardif finished off Miguel Baquero 6-1, 6-2 in just under an hour.
Isabella Ruyu Yan (left) and Elisabeth Djabourian (right). Photo : Sarah-Jade Champagne
Mackinnon and Marc-Édouard L’Allier finished off the sweep with an equally dominant showing in the doubles, scoring a 6-2, 6-1 win. In total, the Canadians lost just seven games across the three matches.
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Their female counterparts had a similarly strong start against the Dominican Republic in the Billie Jean King Cup Juniors.
Amy Shen kicked things off with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Daniela Esther Castilla Macario in just over an hour. Isabella Ruyu Yan then stepped in to complete the sweep. She clinched the tie with a 6-0, 6-4 win over Julianny De La Cruz Champagne before scoring the final point in doubles with Elizabeth Djabourian. The pair cruised to a 6-2, 6-0 win to make it 3-0 for the hosts.
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Both Canadian U14 teams in the World Junior Tennis event had a difficult day-one draw, taking on the United States.
Callie Raharinosy. Photo : Sarah-Jade Champagne
On the girls side, Callie Raharinosy pushed Nadia Poznick hard in the opening match of their tie, but the American took the first point in two tight sets. Brielle Amey followed up with a similar result, getting edged out in two close ones by Isha Manchala. Amey and Victoria Koniouchine were then beaten in the doubles as the Americans swept the tie.
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Both Oscar Sounitsky and Yvan-Raphael Mefire were beaten in straight sets in the singles matches for the U14 boys by Rex Kulman and Nathan Lee respectively. The Canadian pair of Mefire and Liam Suh made a fight of it in the doubles, pushing the American team of Nathan Lee and Maxwell Smith to a match tiebreak, but the Americans took it 10-3 to secure all three points in the tie.
The U16 teams will face the same challenge on Thursday that their U14 counterparts did on Wednesday, taking on the Americans. Canada’s U14 girls will face off with the Dominican Republic while the boys will battle Costa Rica.
Feature Photo : Sarah-Jade Champagne
