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Ahmed pips Omar for under-14 title [Gulf Daily News (Bahrain)](Gulf Daily News (Bahrain) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) AHMED Abdulrasool yesterday lifted the under-14 boy singles trophy in the Ninth Zain Junior Open Tennis Championship 2011, being held at the Bahrain Tennis Club courts in Juffair. The tournament's No. 2 overcame a shaky start to register a 1-6, 7-5, 10-8 come-from-behind victory over top seed Omar Qaed in an over two-hour final. In a closely contested match, 13-year-old Abdulrasool won the second set and then the super tie-break. Abdulrasool, an eighth grade student at Isa Town Intermediate School, is the Bahrain junior team member and has been playing tennis for the last six years. Fourteen-year-old Qaed, a grade nine student at Abdulrahman Al Dakhel School, showed some hesitation in the deciding stages of the match which cost him dearly. Last night's title decider was followed by an awarding ceremony where the finalists received their respective awards from club vice-president Ali Khonji and administration manager Khalid Ghuloom. Meanwhile, five more matches took place yesterday, including four in the under-16 boys singles quarter-finals and one in the under-18 boys singles first round. In the under-16 boys singles, top seed Mohammed Abdula'al kick-started his campaign with a comfortable 6-2, 6-2 win over Mohammed Jelani. Abdula'al, son of former national team captain and present coach Essam Abdula'al, will now play in the semi-finals on Sunday against third seed Ali Al Asfoor who defeated Mohammed Al Kooheji 6-0, 6-0 yesterday. Clash In the remaining two matches, second seed Abdulaziz Janahi eased past Kareem Mazoub 6-0, 6-0 to set up his semi-final clash with Turkey's Mert Ekici who downed Hussain Dawani 6-1, 6-0. The winners of these semi-final matches will be facing off in the title decider on Monday. The under-18 boys singles event got underway yesterday with one game in the first round between Ahmed Dhaif and Sarath Pillai. The former received a walkover and moved on for his quarter-final match, scheduled for Sunday, against top seed Yousif Qaed, who received a bye. There will be no matches this weekend due to National Day holidays. Tournament's action continues on Sunday while the final day of the championship is on Monday when the under-18 boys singles final will be played. More than 100 juniors are taking part in this year's tournament, being organised for the ninth successive time. Sponsored by Bahrain's telecommunications company Zain, this year's tournament features a total of seven different age categories. Meanwhile, the club is organising today a junior tennis festival on the sidelines of Bahrain's National Day celebrations and His Majesty's accession to the throne. Commencing at 3.30pm, the festival will feature several matches and other entertaining programmes. Over 80 of the club's juniors along with a few players from the Saudi Arabia's eastern province are expected to take part. The festival is sponsored by McDonald's, who will be providing free meals. (c) 2011 Al Hilal Publishing & Marketing Group Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |