Windy conditions began Day 10’s action as the Final Four was set for the Open Draw and the Women’s B-Side Final was determined last night.
The evening began with a quarterfinal contest between #9 Tarek Samhan and #4 James Ferguson. It was the first year for both competitors in this tournament and they were seeking to get out of their quarter to make the semi-finals. Both players dealt with the windy conditions very well early on, playing strong points from the baseline with exceptionally strong groundstrokes. Later in the first set, Tarek was able to use his booming forehand in its full capacity, painting the corners to finish off a rally. Those shots propelled him to a 6-3 first set victory. In the 2nd set, both James and Tarek stepped up their games even more with some great touch volleys added to each other’s arsenal. Back and forth they went, with neither player giving an inch or an opening to seize control. Tarek held serve late in the match to go up 5-4. And in the 10th game, during the crucial points, he found his rhythm again with his forehand, hitting a down the line crushing shot on match point to take the set and the match 6-3, 6-4.
The other early evening match was between #2 seed Austin Flannigan and #10 Jacob Luckasavitch. Having made the quarterfinals for the first time, Jacob was looking to take another step further in this match. He began dictating the play with his powerful serve and flat forehand which seemed not so much to bounce off the court but skip off of it making it difficult for Austin to return. Jacob even had a few opportunities to break Austin’s serve as he came in off a return and would crush an overhead smash. But Austin, looking like a 10-year veteran and not someone who has only played in this tournament for two years, managed to collect himself, extend the rallies and cause some untimely errors. With steely nerves, Austin would take the first set 6-3. In the 2nd set, both players took a patient approach with rallies going upwards of 30 shots. Again, Jacob uncorked some fantastic forehands and again Austin played a sound defensive strategy returning some of those shots, while also peppering in some great first serves. Much like the other quarter-final match, the 2nd set was decided by one break. In the end, Austin would hold serve in the 10th game, advancing to his 2nd consecutive semi-finals with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Jacob Luckasavitch.
Below are the full results from last night’s matches:
- #9 Tarek Samhan defeated #4 James Ferguson (Open Draw Quarter-Finals)
- #2 Austin Flannigan defeated #10 Jacob Luckasavitch (Open Draw Quarter-Finals)
- Becky Hawkes defeated #4 Alisha Awadia (Women’s Consolation Semi-Finals)
- Silvie Joly defeated Anna Beben (Women’s Consolation Semi-Finals)
- #1 Grant Gibson defeated #12 Scott Ventureyra (Open Draw Quarter-Finals)
- #14 Ryan Chan defeated #6 Chris Soosalu (Open Draw Quarter-Finals)
Day 11 we start to get a glimpse of the finish line for the tournament as there are only 1 match scheduled for this evening
Below is the full schedule:
7:00 PM:
Demyan Plakhov vs Phong Co (Open Draw Consolation Semi-Finals)
We hope you can come to see what promises to be an entertaining semi-finals.
Patrick LeBlanc
Tournament Coordinator
Barrhaven Tennis Club